AMERICAN HISTORY 
FOR mXlE FOLKS 




ALBERT R BLAISDELL AND 
FRANCIS K. BALL 




Class LJ.21. 



Book Lr':_ 

Gopyiigto^i'' <iDL2 

COPYRIGHT DEPOSm 



AMERICAN HISTORY 
FOR LITTLE FOLKS 




^-'^'fe^w-^^- 



AS A PI.ElXiE THE INDIANS GA\ E PENN A BELT CALLED 
^^'AMPLTM. Frontispif.ce. Sec page 3L 



American History 
For Little Folks 



By 

ALBERT F. BLAISDELL 

AND 

FRANCIS K. BALL 

Authors of "The American History Story-Book,' 

"The Child's Book of American History," 

"Heroic Deeds of American Sailors," etc., etc. 



WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY 

FRANK T. MERRILL 




Boston 

Little, Brown, and Company 

1917 






Copyright, igi7, 
By Little, Brown, and Company. 

All rights reserved 
Published, October, 1917 



THE COLONIAL PRESS 
C. H. SIMONDS CO., PQSTON, U. S. A. 



OCT 13 19I7 

©C;,A477005 



PREFACE 

This little volume is intended to be a supple- 
mentary reading-book on American history for 
use in the third grade of our public schools, 
and for other boys and girls from ten to twelve 
years of age. 

A few of the more dramatic and picturesque 
events in the history of our country are here 
presented in a simple and easy style. They 
have much of human interest, and are full of 
action. Professor Hinsdale, in his ^' How to 
Study and Teach History,'' well says that a 
bit of romance, poetry, anecdote, or story will 
often throw more light on a historical situation 
or let you deeper into a man's heart and life 
than a page of careful analysis or a laborious 
description. 

These stories rest on a historical basis. It 
is hoped that they will not be read and thrown 

V 



PREFACE 

aside like the ordinary collection of stories. 
The book is written to serve as an introduction 
to the more advanced books of this series, 
namely, *^ The Amierican History Story-Book," 
'' The Child's Book of American History," and 
** Heroic Deeds of American Sailors." It is 
suggested that teachers and parents take pains 
to supplement the text with such additional 
material as may be obtained from the other 
volumes of the series. 

The verses in the fourth story are from Mrs. 
Hemans's poem called ** The Landing of the 
Pilgrim Fathers in New England." 

ALBERT F. BLAISDELL, 

FRANCIS K. BALL. 
August, 1917. 



vi 





CONTExNTS 






CHAPTEE 




PAGE 




Preface ........ :, 


V 


I. 


Columbus, the Sailor . 


w ; 


1 


II. 


The Sea of Darkness 




6 


III. 


The Hero of Virginia . 




12 


IV. 


Seeking a New Home 




. 18 


V. 


Captain Miles Standish 




24 


VI. 


Dark Days in New England 




30 


VII. 


The Dutch in New York 




38 


VIII. 


William Penn, the Quaker 




45 


IX. 


Fighting the Indians 




53 


X. 


A Famous Tea Party 




59 


XI. 


A Circle of Stones in the Pavement 


QQ 


XII. 


Polly Daggett Saves the Flagpole 


74 


XIIL 


Peggy White Calls on Lord Cornwallij 


3 80 


XIV. 


Benjamin Franklin 


. 86 


XV. 


"Poor Richard's Almanac" 




. 93 


XVI. 


239 Arch Street 




. 98 


XVII. 


Emily Geiger's Daring Ride 




. 103 


XVIII. 


Life in the Wilderness . 




. 109 


XIX. 


" Remember the Alamo " 




115 


XX. 


Lincoln's Address at Gettysburg . 


. 122 


XXI. 


" The Man Without a Country " . 


. 128 




Pronunciation op Proper Naa 


lES 


. 137 



va 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

As a pledge the Indians gave Penn a belt called 

wampum .... Frontispiece 

PAQB 

" I claim this land in the name of Ferdinand and 

Isabella of Spain" ..... 9 

" You are a little man. Go home and work with 

the women" ...... 27 

The old governor tore up the letter ... 43 

^^ Please, sir, I wish to speak to General Corn- 

wallis," Peggy said to the guard . . 82 

With a single clip of her scissors she cut out a per- 
fect five-pointed star . . . .100 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR 
LITTLE FOLKS 

I 

COLUMBUS, THE SAILOR 

A LITTLE Italian boy, named Chris- 
topher Columbus, lived many- 
years ago in the city of Genoa, 
by the sea. He used to watch the ships 
when they sailed away to distant lands. 
And he watched for them to return with 
their loads of spices, silks, and gems. 
Most of his playmates had fathers or 
brothers who were sailors, who told won- 
derful stories of the strange things they 
had seen. No wonder that the bright-eyed 
Columbus longed to go to sea. 

" I am going to be a sailor when I'm 
a man," he said to his father. ^^ I know 

1 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

now the names of all the ropes and sails 
of a ship." 

'* I am sure yon will never care to work 
with me in cleaning and combing wool," 
was the reply. '' I am willing for you to 
go to sea. But you must go to school first, 
and learn about the winds, and tides, and 
stars." 

Years passed away. The boy grew to 
be a man, and became a sailor. On a voy- 
age to England there was a sea fight, but 
Columbus escaped to Lisbon, in Portugal. 
From here he made long voyages in the 
Atlantic Ocean. He sailed north into the 
seas beyond England, and far to the south, 
^long the coast of Africa. T\Tien he was 
at home, he spent his time in study, or 
talked with old sailors about their voyages, 
and earned a living by making maps and 
charts. 

Now this was more than four hundred 
years ago, and in those days very little of 
the earth was known. Sailors did not ven- 

2 



COLUMBUS, THE SAILOR 

ture far from the land. They kept mostly 
in the sea between Europe and Africa. 
The Atlantic Ocean was called the Sea of 
Darkness. People said that if a man 
sailed far out on it, he would never get 
back again, but would be lost in clouds 
of darkness and seas of fire. They also 
said that it had monsters big enough to 
swallow a ship. 

But there were a few wise men who did 
not believe these stories. They felt sure 
that the earth was round. 

'' If you sail straight west," some said, 
'' you will come back to the place from 
w^hich you started." 

^' No, indeed," others declared. '' The 
earth is flat, like the floor of a room. If 
you go far enough, you will come to the 
edge, and fall off." 

Columbus was one who did not believe 
that the earth was flat. 

^^ I'm sure it is round like a ball," he 
said. ^^ If it is, I can sail round it, just 

3 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

as a fly can crawl round an orange, and I 
can reach India by sailing straight to the 
west. If I can only get ships and sailors, 
I will try it." 

But he was a poor man. What could 
he do without money to buy ships and 
hire sailors? He must find rich and pow- 
erful people to help him. 

Now when Columbus talked in this way 
about sailing across the Sea of Darkness, 
people said it was wild and foolish talk. 
The idea that men could live on the other 
side of the earth! " Why, they would have 
to walk with their feet up," they said, 
'^ and their heads hanging down." And 
others said, ^* If you sail down hill to the 
other side, how can you sail up hill and 
get back home? " 

We are told that even the children used 
to laugh and shout at Columbus. The boys 
would tap their foreheads with their 
fingers as he walked along the street, and 
whisper, ^* He is crazy." 

4 



COLUMBUS, THE SAILOR 

After a time a few men began to tMnk 
that what Columbus said might be true. 
But the rich merchants and people of rank 
who could afford to help him only made 
fun of him. Month after month and year 
after year he went from place to place, 
asking for aid. He often became weary 
and sad, but he never lost faith and hope. 
What happened to him must be told in 
another story. 



5 



n 

THE SEA OF DARKNESS 

GHEISTOPHER COLUMBUS thought 
that he could reach India by sail- 
ing to the west. He went to the 
king of Portugal, and told him what he 
hoped to do. He showed the king his 
maps, and asked him for ships. 

The king treated him badly. He would 
not help him, and was mean enough to 
send one of his own ships, secretly, to see 
if he could find anything. A storm arose. 
The crew were afraid of the high waves, 
and soon sailed back home. 

When Columbus heard what the king 
had done, he left Portugal, and went to 
Spain. King Ferdinand listened to his 
plans, and said, "It is a strange and dan- 

6 



THE SEA OF DARKNESS 

gerous voyage. You must give me time 
to think about it." 

The king talked with the wise men of 
his court, but they only laughed at Colum- 
bus, saying, '' Do not spend money on this 
man's wild ideas." 

There was a long and weary wait. 

'' Perhaps France will help me," Colum- 
bus said at last. '' I will go there." 

But a friend had gone and told Ferdi- 
nand's queen, Isabella. She sent for Co- 
lumbus, and promised him help. 

'' Your plans are worth trying, Colum- 
bus. If need be, I will sell my jewels to 
raise the money." 

Three small ships were now made ready 
for the long voyage across the Sea of 
Darkness. They set sail from Palos, 
August 3, 1492. 

Day after day and week after week they 
sailed out on the trackless ocean. Before 
them, and behind them, there was nothing 
but a waste of sky and water. The men 

7 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

began to be uneasy. They called to mind 
the old stories about the Sea of Darkness. 

'* ,We shall never find land," they grum- 
bled. '' The east winds are carrying us 
right away from home. How can we ever 
sail back? We shall all be lost." 

Some of the sailors became so angry 
that they planned to throw Columbus over- 
board, and sail back to Spain. They would 
say that he fell into the sea while looking 
at the stars. 

Columbus was as firm as a rock. 

^' Go back to your work, men," he said. 
** If at the end of three days no land is 
found, we will sail back home." 

Columbus had seen signs of land. Sea- 
weed had floated past. A bird now and 
then flew over his ship. Once a bush with 
red berries was seen in the water. 

One night, when Columbus stood on the 
high deck and looked to the west, he saw 
a light, which seemed to rise and fall on 
the water. 

8 




I cT.Anr Tins land in the name of Ferdinand and 

ISABELLA OF SPAIN." Page 9. 



THE SEA OF DARKNESS 

'^ Look there, man; do you see a light? " 
he asked a sailor. 

'' Surely, master. It is like a torch wav- 
ing to and fro. Land must be near." 

Columbus and his men waited impa- 
tiently for day. At sunrise there lay be- 
fore them a lovely tropical island. This 
was on Friday morning, October 12. 

Joy filled the heart of Columbus. He 
believed that he had reached one of the 
islands off the coast of India. He did not 
know that he had found a new world. 

Dressed in a scarlet robe, with sword in 
hand, he went ashore. He threw himself 
on his knees, and kissed the earth, and 
gave thanks to God for bringing them 
safely over the trackless ocean. 

He then set up a cross, and unfurled 
the Spanish flag, saying, ** I claim this 
land in the name of Ferdinand and Isa- 
bella of Spain." 

The little island was one of the Bahamas, 
north of Cuba, and not far from the coast 

9 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

of Florida. Columbus gave it tlie name 
of San Salvador. 

The island seemed like a fairy land. 

^* It is so beautiful a country/' Colum- 
bus said, ^' that I should like never to 
leave it." 

The sea was as smooth as glass. Birds 
with gay plumage flitted in and out of the 
woods. Beautiful flowers, strange fruits, 
and wonderful trees were everywhere. 
And the people looked odd, with their 
high cheek bones, copper-colored skin, and 
straight black hair. 

^^ It is all strange," said Columbus to 
himself. '^ These people are savage, and 
yet I am sure this is India." And so he 
called them Indians. By this name they 
are called to this day. 

Columbus spent some weeks among the 
islands. At last he set sail for Spain, to 
carry the news of his wonderful voyage. 
It was a proud day for him and for Spain 
when he reached home. Ferdinand and 

10 



THE SEA OF DARKNESS 



Isabella sent for him to come and tell them 
his story. And the proudest and richest 
men of the kingdom were glad to honor 
him.. 



11 



in 

THE HERO OF VIRGINIA 

t I ^HEEE was once an English boy 
I named John Smith. He ran away 
to sea and was shipwrecked. 
Somebody stole what little money he had. 
He went back to England and enlisted in 
the army. 

Suddenly he left the army. He built a 
hut for himself in the thick woods. Here 
he lived with his horse, which was his 
only companion. He learned to use sword 
and gun, and to ride horseback. 

At one time he was on a ship near the 
coast of Italy. A storm came up. The 
sailors said that he was a bad fellow and 
the cause of the storm. And so they threw 
him into the sea. 

He was a good swimmer, and reached 
12 



THE HERO OF VIRGINIA 

an island in safety. He was soon rescued 
and taken on board a French man-of-war. 
In a sharp battle he fought so well that 
he received a share of the prize money. 

At another time he fought against the 
Turks. But he was captured, and sold as 
a slave. His master put an iron collar 
round his neck, and was cruel to him. 

One day the Turk hit him a blow on 
the head. This was more than the young 
Englishman could bear. He struck the 
Turk, jumped on a horse, and rode for his 
life. 

After many hardships he got away from 
Turkey, and found his way back to Eng- 
land. He came home just in time to hear 
about a band of people who were to sail 
across the ocean to settle in Virginia. 

John Smith was now only twenty-seven 
years old, and life in a tiny English vil- 
lage was dull. Nothing could suit him 
better than to go to the New World to 
seek new adventures, and so he joined 

13 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

the company who were just starting for 
America. 

For many weeks they were tossed about 
on the stormy sea. They finally reached 
land, near the mouth of a broad river, and 
sailed slowly up the stream. This was in 
the month of May, 1607. 

It was a lovely time of year. The air 
was soft and warm. Birds sang in the 
woods. Flowers bloomed on the banks of 
the river. Here the colonists found a place 
to clear the land and build their log cabins. 
They called the river the James, and the 
settlement Jamestown, in honor of their 
king. 

These settlers had a bad time of it. At 
home most of them had never been used 
to hard work. What did they know or 
care about cutting down trees or plant- 
ing corn? They spent their time hunting 
for gold. They came for gold, they said, 
and gold they must have. 

There were other troubles too. It was 
14 



THE HERO OF VIRGINIA 

late in the season to plant corn, even if 
the men were willing to work. And the 
food which they brought from England 
would not last long. Then the Indians did 
not like the white-faced strangers, and 
made trouble for them. Worst of all, many 
of the settlers fell sick. 

This was the time for a man like John 
Smith. There was need of a leader, or the 
feeble settlement would perish. 

Now many of the settlers did not like 
John Smith. On the long voyage to Amer- 
ica he had made some of the lazy ones 
go to work. And he used to tell big 
stories, and brag of what he had done 
in foreign lands. Still, they all knew about 
his courage and good sense. 

But Captain John was the right man 
in the right place. He took hold with a 
good will. He worked early and late, and 
kept everybody busy. Some chopped down 
trees. Others dug up the ground and 
planted corn for a late harvest. 

15 % 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 



<< 



If you are too lazy to work," said the 
new leader, '^ you may starve. The rest 
shall not feed you." 

When the settlers were in need of food, 
he took a few men in an open boat and 
sailed up the James Eiver to trade with 
the Indians. He gave beads, little mirrors, 
and trinkets for com and beans. Often the 
red men were ugly and would not trade 
ripe corn for trinkets. But John Smith 
was a fearless man and a shrewd trader. 
Even if the Indians would not at first 
trade, he in some way gained their good 
will, and sailed back to Jamestown with a 
boatload of food. 

Most of the settlers soon grew tired 
of the hardships. Without the good sense, 
boldness, and restless energy of John 
Smith, the people of the feeble, half-starved 
colony in Virginia would have lost their 
courage and gone back to England. 
Through their brave leader the English 
people gained their first foothold in the 

16 



THE HERO OF VIRGINIA 

New World. In Virginia was laid the first 
foundation stone of our great nation. 
John Smith is often called the Hero of 
Virginia and the Father of Virginia. 



17 



IV 

SEEKING A NEW HOME 

FOR many weeks the little ship May- 
flower had been making her way 
across the Atlantic. Storm after 
storm tossed the vessel about. The passen- 
gers often thought that they must all 
perish. 

'^ Land! Land! " shouted a sailor, early 
one morning. 

The frail and leaky vessel, driven out of 
her course, had reached the barren shore 
of Cape Cod, and found shelter in the 
harbor. It was a bleak November day. 
Not a living thing was to be seen but the 
gulls, which flew with shrill cries to and 
fro over the water. 

18 



SEEKING A NEW HOME 

"The breaking waves dashed high 
On a stern and rock-bound coast, 
And the woods against a stormy sky 
Their giant branches tossed; 

"And the heavy night hung dark 
The hills and waters o'er, 
When a band of exiles moored their bark 
On the wiild New England shore." 

These people wished to make a home in 
the New World, where they could be free 
to worship G-od in their own way. They 
called themselves Pilgrims, which means 
strangers, or wanderers. 

'' Let us thank God," said Elder Brew- 
ster, " for bringing us safely over the vast 
and furious ocean, and putting our feet on 
the firm earth." So they knelt on the deck 
of the Mayflower, and gave thanks. 

The Mayflower lay at anchor for about 
a month. A spring of fresh water was 
found close to the beach. The first Mon- 
day morning the women went ashore and 
washed the clothes. During the voyage 
there had been no water for this. 

19 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

The men were busy too. They made 
trips along the shore to find a place for 
a home. 

The land was poor. Here and there 
were little momids on the dreary sand 
hills. They dug into them, and found 
baskets of corn, which the Indians had 
buried. They obtained ten bushels of this, 
" some yellow, some red, and others mixed 
with blue," and kept it for seed. Like 
honest men, they paid the Indians when 
they found the owners. 

Far away to the northwest on a clear 
day could be seen the blue headlands of 
a harbor. 

'' A few years ago I was there with Cap- 
tain John Smith," said the pilot. ^^ It is 
a safe harbor. There is plenty of good 
water, and the soil is rich." 

So one day in December some of the 
strongest men put off in their sailboat 
for a trip along the shore of the great bay. 

On the third day, which was Saturday, 
20 



SEEKING A NEW HOME 

a gale drove tlieir boat ashore on an island. 
Early on Monday morning they rowed over 
to the mainland. There they found a 
lovely spot " with cornfields and little run- 
ning brooks." Not far from the shore was 
a large spring of pure cold water. 

Captain John Smith had made a map 
of this region, and called the spot Plym- 
outh. The Pilgrims liked the name, for 
they had sailed from Plymouth in England. 

^' Here is our home at last,'' said Cap- 
tain Miles Standish; " let us hurry back 
with the good news." 

On December 21, 1620, the Pilgrims ar- 
rived at Plymouth. The place had once 
been an Indian village. But most of the 
red men had gone, leaving their cornfields 
for the strangers to plant. 

The Mayflower had to anchor out in the 
bay. The woman and children stayed on 
board. The men went ashore to cut down 
trees and build houses. 

On Christmas Day the first log cabin was 
21 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

raised. " No man rested on that day," 
said Governor Bradford in Ms Journal; 
'^ we had a sore storm of wind and rain/' 

The people were not used to the raw 
climate, and suffered from exposure and 
lack of food. Sometimes they had to live 
entirely on clams. The good Elder never 
failed to ask a blessing on their scanty 
meals and thank God, ^' who had yet given 
them of the treasures hid in the sand." 

At last the sad winter was at an end. 
The spring came early that year. We read 
in Governor Bradford's Journal, " The 
grass was green and the birds were sing- 
ing merrily on the third day of March. 
There was a lively thunderstorm in the 
afternoon." 

A few days later two of the girls found 
on the edge of a snowbank some sweet 
rose-tinted flowers. 

'' God be praised," said the good Elder. 
'' Behold our Mayflower here." Ever 
since that day, three hundred years ago, 

22 



SEEKING A NEW HOME 

the boys and girls have picked Mayflowers 
in the Plymouth woods. 

The middle of April came. The cap- 
tain of the ship was in a hurry to return 
to England. The day of sailing came. 
With sad faces and tear-dimmed eyes, the 
Pilgrims climbed the hill and waved fare- 
well. 

The ship had been their home for many 
months, and was dear to them all. But 
they did not wish to go back with her. 

In silence they watched the sail grow 
smaller and smaller. 

At last, when they could see it no longer, 
the good Elder Brewster said, '' Let us 
pray." And they knelt and thanked God, 
and took courage. 



23 



CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 

CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH had 
been an English soldier. He be- 
came a good friend to the Pil- 
grims. He liked them for their simple and 
honest ways of living. When they sailed 
for the New World, he went with them. 
It was well that he did so, for he was 
the most useful man in the whole colony. 
A good soldier was needed to fight the 
Indians. When the Pilgrims were sick, he 
nursed them, and was as gentle as a 
woman. 

Captain Standish was a little man! He 
was not much taller than most boys of 
fourteen. Some of the Indians used to 
laugh at him behind his back, and call him 

24 



CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 

Captain Shrimp. Others called him Boil- 
ing .Water, because he was easily made 
angry. But they learned to fear him, and 
let the Pilgrims alone. 

While the Mayflower was at anchor at 
Cape Cod, Captain Standish and his men 
made several trips along the shore of the 
bay. They had to sleep in the snow, and 
much of the time they were wet to the 
skin. 

One morning they were awakened by a 
wild cry. They had never heard anything 
like it before. It was an Indian war 
whoop. 

Even brave Captain Standish was a bit 
startled. But he quickly rallied his men, 
who fired their guns at the savages. 

The Indians ran off in great haste. 
They had never heard guns fired before. 
They were afraid of the white-faced stran- 
gers who could make thunder and light- 
ning when they pleased. 

On one of their trips the Pilgrims found 
25 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

a Kttle tree bent to the ground, with some 
acorns scattered about. 

" Look out there, men," cried Captain 
Standish; '' it may be a deer trap which 
the Indians have set." 

^^ Let me take a look at it and see what 
I can find," said William Bradford, who 
did not watch where he was stepping. 

All of a sudden the trap sprung. The 
dignified man was caught by the foot, and 
found himself jerked up in the air. We 
may be sure that this made even the sober 
Pilgrims laugh. 

The first harvest at Plymouth was good. 
When the crops were gathered in, the 
Pilgrims had a thne of thanksgiving. To 
this feast the ladian chief Massasoit and 
ninety of his braves were invited. They 
came dressed in deerskins, feathers, and 
foxtails. Their faces were daubed with 
red, yellow, and white paint. Pound his 
neck Massasoit wore a bag of tobacco and 
a string of beads. 

26 




YOU ARE A LITTLE MAN. GO HOME AND WORK WITH THE 
WOMEN." Page 27. 



CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 

The feast was kept up for a week. Cap- 
tain Standisli did his part every day. At 
sunrise he fired the cannon on the top of 
the hill, and paraded his little company 
of twelve soldiers. 

A few years later the Indians made an 
attack on the people in a little village not 
far from Plymouth. Captain Standish 
with a few men rushed to the help of the 
settlers. The redskins were bold and ugly. 
A big Indian, much larger and stronger 
than Standish, came up to him with a knife 
in his hand. 

'^ So you are the great paleface chief 
who has come to fight us," said the Indian. 
^^ You are a little man. Go home and work 
with the women. You cannot fight." 

Captain Standish was boiling over with 
anger. For a wonder he kept control of 
himself. 

The next day he and his men met the 
Indians in a log cabin. The big Indian 
was again insulting. Suddenly the door 

27 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

was shut. Captain Standish sprang like 
a tiger on tlie big redskin who had made 
fun of him. A general fight took place, 
but the Pilgrims won. 

This bold deed of the fiery little captain 
put an end to the trouble with the savages. 

During that first hard winter on the 
Plymouth shore Captain Standish lost his 
lovely young wife. His life became more 
and more lonely. At last he made up his 
mind to marry again, and wished to win 
Priscilla Mullins, who was an orphan. 

Now the Captain was a bold Indian 
fighter, but was timid in making love. He 
did not have the courage to go to Priscilla, 
but urged his young friend John Alden 
to woo^ her for him. 

John Alden, who also loved the girl, and 
wished to be true to his friend, at first 
refused. But at last he went to her home 
with the Captain's message. 

He found Priscilla sitting at her spin- 
ning wheel, singing. He gave her a bunch 

28 



CAPTAIN MILES STANDISH 

of Mayflowers, which he had gathered on 
his way through the woods, and told her 
why he had come. And he praised the 
Captain for his bravery and goodness. 

Priscilla knew John Alden's heart, but 
listened to his pleading for his friend. 
Then turning to him with a sweet smile, 
she said, " 'Wh.j don't you speak for your- 
self, John? " 

We have not time now to tell you the 
rest of the story. Some day you may read 
it in Longfellow's poem called The Court- 
ship of Miles Standish. 

Across the bay from Plymouth, on a 
high point named Captain's Hill, stands 
a granite monument, over one hundred feet 
high. On the top of it, looking toward the 
broad ocean, there is a statue of the fiery 
but tender-hearted Captain Miles Standish. 



29 



VI 

DARK DAYS IN NEW ENGLAND 

IT was in the year 1675, a little more 
than fifty years after the Pilgrims 
landed at Plymouth. Philip, the son 
of the good Massasoit, was now chief of the 
Indians who lived in this region. He called 
himself King Philip. He was a shrewd, 
crafty, and cruel savage. He hated the 
English. He saw that there were more 
and more white-faced settlers coming every 
year. 

^' If the red man does not drive out the 
paleface," he said, '' the paleface will drive 
out the red man.'' 

Many of the settlers, like honest men, 
had bought their land of the Indians, and 
paid for it in knives, guns, and blankets. 

30 



DARK DAYS IN NEW ENGLAND 

Others were dishonest. They cheated the 
red men in trading cheap beads and 
trinkets for skins and furs. 

King Philip planned to harm the Eng- 
lish. In the year of our story he sent gifts 
to other chiefs, saying, " Come and help 
me to drive out the white-faced strangers." 

Now came the '' black and fatal days " 
that the old Pilgrim preachers spoke of. 
There broke out a war of fire and fury 
that laid w^aste the land. 

The first blow was struck at the village 
of Swansea, near King Philip's home. It 
was a little place of forty log cabins. One 
Sunday forenoon, while the people were 
at church, a party of savages stole into the 
village and set fire to several cabins. 

A young man galloped to other villages 
for help. 

" Indians! Indians! " he shouted; *' the 
Indians have set fire to Swansea. Come 
and help us." 

Men hurried to the rescue. When they 
31 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

reached the village, they saw a sight that 
made them pale and heartsick. The bodies 
of men, women, and children, cruelly killed, 
lay near their burned log cabins. 

A few days later the same savages at- 
tacked another village. Some of the peo- 
ple were burned at the stake. 

The war spread like wildfire from Plym- 
outh to the valley of the Connecticut 
River. Up the valley of the river, from 
Springfield to Northfield, was a chain of 
tiny villages. These distant places were 
always in danger from the Indians. 

One night in August three hundred sav- 
ages made a sudden attack on Brookfield. 
Nearly all the people fled from their cabins 
to the large blockhouse. 

The redskins shot arrows tipped with 
burning rags on the roof of the blockhouse. 
But the women and children crawled into 
the attic and threw water out on the burn- 
ing shingles. The Indians then tried to 
get near enough to the house to set it on 

32 



DARK DAYS IN NEW ENGLAND 

fire. From the overhanging windows and 
loopholes the men kept them back with 
their guns. 

After dark an Indian crept up and set 
fire to a corner of the blockhouse. A brave 
young fellow ran outside and put out the 
fire. 

For three days and three nights the fight 
with the howling savages was kept up. 

One day the Indians made a rude sort 
of cart and loaded it with hay. They 
lighted the hay, pushed the cart toward the 
blockhouse, and set it on fire. The tired 
people seemed near death. Suddenly the 
sky grew dark. A heavy shower came and 
put out the fire. 

On the third day a man was sent out 
to spread the news of the fight. Thirty 
miles from Brookfield he met an old Indian 
fighter named Simon Willard at the head 
of forty-seven men on horseback. Just 
after sunset the sturdy old man and his 
company galloped into the village. They 

33 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

quickly drove the howling savages to a 
swamp, fifteen miles away. 

A romantic story is told of the Indian 
attack on the little village of Hadley. The 
people were in church when they heard the 
awful war whoop of the Indians. The men 
seized their guns and ran out. The village 
seemed filled with savages. 

For a moment the men were dazed. 
Their courage almost gave way. AU at 
once a tall old man with white hair and 
a long white beard stood among them. He 
wore a sword and carried a gun. 

" Follow me," he said cahnly; '^ I will 
be your captain." 

In a short time the Indians were put to 
flight, and the village of Hadley was safe. 

*' Who was this who saved our village? " 
the people asked. 

Nobody could say. The stranger was 
nowhere to be found. The people of Had- 
ley never saw him again. 

" It was an angel sent from heaven to 
34 



DARK DAYS IN NEW ENGLAND 

save us," some said, as they told the story 
to their grandchildren in after years. 

It is thought that the old soldier was 
Colonel William Goffe. He had fled from 
England to America, and w^as kept hid by 
friends. 

Another dreadful fight with the Indians 
soon took place at Bloody Brook, near 
Deerfield. Seven hundred Indians hid in 
ambush and attacked a company of ninety 
men when they were crossing this small 
stream. Only eight escaped to tell the 
story. 

During the next winter a fierce attack 
was made at sunrise on the village of Lan- 
caster. Forty men, women, and children 
found shelter in the minister's large log 
house. Only one escaped. A dozen or 
more were killed, and the rest were carried 
off as captives. 

Soon after this a band of two thousand 

Indians gathered in a big log fort in Rhode 

35 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

Island. They felt safe, for they were in a 
swamp, and hard to reach. 

But Captain Church, a fearless Indian 
fighter, tramped through snow and water 
with about a thousand sturdy men. There 
was a bitter fight on a stormy Sunday 
afternoon. Nearly half of the Indians were 
killed. Their wigwams were set on fire, 
and their supply of corn was burnt. 

This defeat saved the people in the 
villages. 

Shortly afterward Captain Church cap- 
tured the wife and children of the cruel 
King Philip. 

'' Now I am ready to die," said the great 
chief. 

He was hunted from place to place. At 
last an Indian told Captain Church where 
he was hid. Church and his men sur- 
rounded the spot. 

*^ Now we have him," said Captain 

Church. ^* It is impossible for him to 

escape." 

36 



DARK DAYS IN NEW ENGLAND 

The death of King Philip put an end to 
this cruel war. 

Indeed those were ^* black and fatal 
days, the saddest that ever befell New 
England." One thousand brave men had 
been killed or made captives. Women and 
children had been killed with the toma- 
hawk or tortured to death. Twelve hun- 
dred log cabins had been burned. Of 
ninety villages twelve had been destroyed. 



37 



vn 

THE DUTCH IN NEW YORK 

HENRY HUDSON was a famous 
English sea captain. The people 
called him ^' the bold English- 
man." He had made several voyages to 
find a way to China and India through 
the Arctic Ocean. He went nearer to the 
north pole than any other sailor of his 
time. Great icebergs nearly crushed his 
little ship, and forced him to sail back to 
England. 

At this time the Dutch people who lived 
in Holland were carrying on a brisk trade 
with Asia. They were looking for a pas- 
sage through the continent of America, 
hoping to reach that distant land more 
quickly than by sailing round the Cape of 

Good Hope. 

38 



THE DUTCH IN NEW YORK 

The Dutch merchants had heard of Hud- 
son's daring trips to the far north. So 
they hired him to sail once more to dis- 
cover a passage to the Pacific Ocean. 
They furnished him with a little ship called 
the Half Moon. This was in 1609, eleven 
3^ears before the Pilgrims landed at Plym- 
outh. 

But it was the same old story. The 
sailors grew tired of fogs, ice, and the 
bitter cold. They were ugly and unruly. 

'^ Turn back, Captain," they cried. 
" Turn back before our vessel is dashed 
to pieces against the icebergs, and we are 
frozen to death in these icy waters." 

Now^ Captain John Smith had sent a 
map to his old friend Captain Hudson, 
and told him that there was a strait lead- 
ing into the Western Ocean north of the 
English colony in Virginia. Thus it came 
about that Hudson turned his ship to 
the south, and sailed up and dowm the 
coast to find the gateway to the Pacific. 

39 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

One lovely day in September lie sailed 
into a great bay. Here lie dropped anchor 
not far from the mouth of a broad river, 
which he named the Great River. 

Indians soon flocked about to see the 
*^ great white bird," as they called the 
Half Moon, on account of her white sails. 
These red men had never seen a ship be- 
fore, and did not know what to make of 
the strange visitors. They were kind to 
the white-faced strangers. They brought 
grapes, furs, and corn, and traded them for 
beads, knives, and red coats. 

Hudson sent out some of his men to take 
a look at the land. They came back and 
said, ^^ It is as pleasant with grass and 
flowers and very sweet smells as ever we 
have seen." 

After a few days the Half Moon sailed 
up the beautiful river, which has since 
been named the Hudson. The Indians 
came from far and near and gazed in won- 
der at the little Dutch ship. Men, women, 

40 



THE DUTCH IN NEW YORK 

and children in their canoes paddled round 
the vessel. Eagerly they traded corn and 
tobacco for pieces of red cloth, shining 
brass buttons, and hatchets. 

One old Indian chief made a feast in his 
bark wigwam, and invited Captain Hudson 
and his men. They sat on a mat and ate 
from a huge wooden bowl. The chief in- 
vited Hudson to stay all night. The In- 
dians broke their arrows and threw them 
into the fire. This was to show that they 
did not mean to do any harm. 

Hudson then sailed up the river until he 
reached the spot where now stands the city 
of Albany. 

" This is as beautiful a land as one can 
tread upon," he said; '' but the river grows 
narrower, the water is fresh. Surely this 
is not the way to the Pacific." 

Slowly and sadly he put the Half Moon 
about, sailed down the river, and then 
across the ocean to Holland. He claimed 
the country on the banks of the great 

41 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

river for Holland. He told the Dutch 
people that the land was the most beautiful 
in the world. 

It was plain from his story that he had 
found a land where the natives had plenty 
of furs, and the Dutch sent out men to 
trade with the Indians. 

After a time they built a log fort and 
log cabins on the lov/er end of what is 
now Manhattan Island. This little village 
of log houses they called Xew Amsterdam, 
after the chief city of Holland. For 
twenty-four dollars worth of beads, rib- 
bons, knives, and other trinkets, they had 
bought the whole island on which New 
York now stands. 

The Dutch kept the country for only 
about fifty years. They did not get along 
well with the governors who were sent out 
from Holland. There were four of these 
in all, and rather a bad lot. 

The fourth and last governor was Peter 
Stuy^^esant. He was an honest, stubborn, 

42 





!!•: OLD (.()\ I'lKiXoK roui': ri* 'iiii'; \.\:niAi. r<,;^c A^. 



THE DUTCH IN NEW YORK 

fearless, but hot-tempered man. Some of 
the people called him Headstrong Peter, 
and others named him Old Silver-leg, be- 
cause having lost a leg in battle, he used 
a wooden one with bands of silver round it. 

Now the king of England did not take 
kindly to the Dutch and their success in 
building up trade in New Amsterdam. So 
he made a present of the whole region to 
his brother, the Duke of York. He claimed 
that the land belonged to England, because 
John Cabot had taken possession of it 
many years before, and he sent an English 
fleet over. 

'* Pull down that Dutch flag and sur- 
render the fort," wrote the commander of 
the fleet, " or I'll fire on you." 

The old governor tore up the letter, and 
with his wooden leg stamped about in great 
anger. 

*^ 111 die before the fort shall be given 
up to the English," he said to the women 
and children who begged him to surrender. 

43 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

But it was of no use. The people were 
tired of the stubborn old governor. They 
would not fight. They would rather take 
a chance with the English. 

So the Dutch flag came down, and the 
flag of England was run up in its place. 
From that time the name of the whole 
region was changed from New Amsterdam 
to New York, in honor of the king's 
brother, the Duke of York. 



44 



nr 



vni 

WILLIAM PENN, THE QUAKER 

HE tower of the City Hall in Phila- 
I delphia rises more tlian five hun- 
dred feet above the street. On the 
top of this tower is a large statue of 
William Penn. His hands are outstretched 
as if to give a blessing. This great and 
good man was the founder of the colony 
of Pennsylvania, about sixty years after 
the Pilgrims began their home at Plym- 
outh. 

William Penn's father was a rich and 
famous English admiral. He had fought 
many battles for England, and was a great 
favorite with the king and royal family. 
William, a bright, handsome, and well-be- 
haved lad, was the admiral's only son. He 
received instruction from the best teachers. 

45 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

IWhen lie went to Oxford University, he 
was dearly loved by all who knew him, 
because of his kind heart and winning 
ways. 

While he was at college, he heard a 
famous Quaker speak. He was much in- 
terested. He came to believe that the 
Quakers were right, and made up his mind 
to join them. 

The Quakers, or Friends, as they called 
themselves, were a good but peculiar peo- 
ple. They lived quietly, and dressed 
plainly. They were honest, hard-working, 
and prosperous. They were peaceable, ob- 
served the laws, and minded their own 
business. 

They believed that war was wicked. 
They said that men should love each other, 
and live in peace. 

They would not take off their hats to 
anybody, not even to the king. 

In their church they had no pastor, 
music, or sermon. They sat on wooden 

46 



WILLIAM PENN, THE QUAKER 

benches in silence, or rose and spoke when 
they felt like doing so. 

The old admiral was angry; at his son 
for becoming a Quaker. 

^^ Why will you not take off your hat 
before King Charles? " he asked him one 
day. ^' If you will promise to do this, I 
will forgive you." 

Young Penn thought it over, but would 
not promise. 

The father now got very angry. He 
turned his son out of doors. But Penn's 
mother begged for the boy, and he was 
allowed to go home again. 

At last the admiral became sick. He 
sent for an old friend, the brother of King 
Charles. '' Look after my boy," he said. 
'* I am sure he will get into a great deal 
of trouble." 

William Penn now became a Quaker 
preacher. On one occasion he was put in 
prison for eight months in the gloomy old 
Tower of London. At another time he 

47 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

was sent to prison because lie would not 
take off Ms hat in the courtroom. 

King Charles the Second was a merry, 
light-hearted, and good-natured man. One 
day Penn went to see him, and as usual 
kept his broad-brimmed hat on. 

The king took his own hat off. 

^' Friend Charles, why does thee take off 
thy hat? " asked Penn. 

'^ Because," replied the king, ^' where I 
am it is the custom for only one to remain 
with the head covered." 

After Penn had been cast into prison 
several times, and had suffered insult and 
hardship, he wished to try '' the holy ex- 
periment," as he called it. This was to 
plant a colony in America, '^ a free colony 
for all mankind.'^ 

King Charles had owed Admiral Penn 
a large sum of money. This he now owed 
to the son. But he spent so much money 
on himself and his friends that he had little 
to pay his debts. 

48 



WILLIAM PENN, THE QUAKER 

*' Instead of money, friend Charles," 
said Penn, '^ give me land on the Delaware 
River in America. This will pay; the debt 
you owe my father." 

It was much easier for the king to give 
away land which he had never seen than 
to pay an old debt with real money. 

^' Yes," said King Charles. *' I will 
give you the land on the west side of the 
Delaware River. It shall be called Penn- 
sylvania, ' Penn's woods.' This is not in 
your honor, but in memory of your noble 
father. For rent, you shall pay me every 
year two beaver skins and one fifth of all 
the gold and silver you may find." 

Thus it came about that King Charles 
gave Penn a tract of land in America 
nearly as large as the whole of England. 

In the year 1682 Penn came over to 
America in the good ship Welcome. The 
^' Quaker king," as he was called, was 
warmly received by the Quakers who liad 
come over the year before. 

49 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

Penn sailed up the Delaware River until 
he came to the place which he had chosen 
for his capital. To this spot he gave the 
Bible name of Philadelphia, after a city 
in Asia spoken of in the New Testament. 
The name means the City of Brotherly Love. 

Penn said that the Indians must be 
treated kindly and honestly. He would be 
just to them and live at peace with them. 
The land should be paid for. 

He soon sent word to the Indians to 
come and meet him. The place was under 
a big elm tree on the banks of the Dela- 
ware River. This tree was afterwards 
called the Treaty Elm. 

On the chosen day, the Indians, with 
squaws and papooses, came to the meeting 
under the big tree. The Quakers had no 
guns or swords. There were no soldiers 
to be seen. After food was served, the 
council began. Dressed in his drab clothes, 
with broad-brimmed hat, and a blue sash, 
Penn began to talk to the Indians. 

50 



WILLIAM PENN, THE QUAKER 

" The great God above us," lie said, '' is 
father of both the white and the red man. 
We are all brothers. Let us live in peace." 

The Indians were greatly pleased with 
the kind words and gentle manner of the 
good man. They talked with each other, 
and then answered, " We will make a 
treaty with the white man. We will live 
in peace with Penn and his children as 
long as the sun and the moon shall shine." 

The pipe of peace was passed round, 
and each took a whiff. 

Tlie Indians kept their word. For many 
long years the treaty was never broken. 
As long as the Quakers controlled Penn- 
sylvania, it was said that not a drop of 
Quaker blood was ever shed by an Indian. 

As a pledge the Indians gave Penn a 
belt called wampum. This belt was made 
up of eighteen strings of black and white 
shell beads. It is still kept as a precious 
relic, and may be seen in Philadelphia. 

The Indians were always fond of 
51 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

William Penn. He slept at times in their 
wigwams. He ate their roasted corn and 
hominy. He enjoyed frolics with the In- 
dian children. He took part in the out- 
door games of the braves. The good man 
also talked to the savages about their faith 
in God, whom they called the Great Spirit. 

For many years after Penn died, when 
an Indian wished to speak well of a white 
man, he would say, ^^ He is like William 
Penn." 

When Penn's colony was founded, the 
glad news spread far and wide that there 
was a country where a poor man could 
buy a farm. He could make a home and 
worship God as he pleased, and there was 
no dread of the Indians. 

Settlers from Europe flocked to the new 
country. The Quaker settlement grew 
faster than the other colonies. For many 
years Philadelphia was the largest city 
in America. 



52 



IX 

FIGHTING THE INDIANS 

THE early settlers of our country 
lived in constant danger of the 
Indians. Savages would hide in 
the woods for weeks to get a chance to 
burn a lonely log cabin, to shoot and scalp 
the men at work in the fields, and carry 
off the women and children. 

In those days the women and children 
were trained to defend themselves with 
guns and axes. A boy of twelve became 
a soldier in the log fort. A loophole was 
given to him, from which he was to shoot 
when the Indians made an attack. 

One day in New England a Mrs. Butler 
and her two little children were left alone 
in a log cabin. She looked up from her 
work and saw an Indian peering in at the 
window. 

53 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

She quickly put the children under a big 
brass kettle. Then seizing a shovelful of 
coals from the fireplace, she dashed them 
into the redskin's face. 

Maddened with pain, the Indian took to 
his heels. 

One Sunday morning a band of Indians 
attacked a little village of thirty log houses 
on the Merrimac River. They killed Mr. 
Rolfe, the minister. He had two little 
daughters. A negro servant girl jumped 
from her bed and led the two frightened 
children into the cellar. She put them 
under washtubs, and then hid herself be- 
hind a meat barrel. 

Down came the Indians. Several times 
they walked past the tubs where the chil- 
dren were hid. They drank milk from the 
pans, and threw the pans on the cellar 
floor. They took the meat from the barrel. 
But they did not see anybody. 

On the same day the savages attacked 
the house of a Mr. Swan. They tried to 

54 



FIGHTING THE INDIANS 

batter down the front door. He was a 
tiniid man, and told his wife to let them in. 

'' Never," cried the pioneer woman; '' let 
me see what I can do." 

A big Indian put his back against the 
stout oak door, and the others crow^ded 
against him. The door w^as slowly pushed 
open a little way. 

Mrs. Swan was quick to act. She seized 
an iron spit from the fireplace, nearly three 
feet long. "With all her might she drove it 
through the body of the savage. 

The Indians did not like this kind of 
fighting, and ran away. 

In the yard of a little fort on the Ohio 
frontier a young woman was boiling soap. 

The big oak gate of the stockade had 
been left partly open. A savage with a 
tomahawk in his hand tried to squeeze 
through. Quick as a flash the woman 
dashed a bucket of boiling soap on him. 

With a howl the Indian ran into the 
deep woods and was seen no more. 

55 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

One night in Kentucky the Indians at- 
tacked the cabin of a man named Merrill. 
Mr. Merrill stood in the door and fired at 
the savages imtil he himself was shot sev- 
eral times. 

Mrs. Merrill closed the oak door, but the 
Indians chopped a hole in it and tried to 
crawl through. She stood at one side and 
killed two or three with her ax when their 
heads appeared. This made the savages 
furious. Two of them climbed to the roof 
of the cabin, to drop down through the 
big chimney. 

Mrs. Merrill seized a feather bed, cut it 
open, and threw the feathers on the live 
coals in the fireplace. 

Blinded by the flames and smoke, the 
Indians tumbled down, and were quickly 
killed by the brave woman. 

In their attacks on settlers the Indians 
tried all kinds of tricks. The pioneers 
used to hunt wild turkeys for food. The 
Indians would imitate the turkey call, and 

56 



FIGHTING THE INDIANS 

thus get a chance to shoot the hunter when 
he came near. 

A few settlers from Virginia lived on 
one of the branches of the Ohio River. 

*^ To the blockhouse! The Indians are 
coming," was the cr^ early one morning. 

Half a dozen canoes filled with Indians 
were seen near the bank of the river. 

The savages began a lively attack on the 
stockade. The men fought bravely, while 
the women made bullets and loaded the 
guns. 

Tom Blake, a lad in the fort, saw a sav- 
age creeping through the grass. He fired, 
and the Indian fell. 

'^ I have killed an Indian," he cried. 

" Don't be too sure, my boy," said a 
gray-headed old hunter, who knew the 
tricks of the red man; ^^ keep your eye on 
that redskin until I load my rifle." 

'^Why, what are you going to do?" 
asked Tom. '' Don't waste good powder 
and bullet on a dead Indian." 

57 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

'' Wait a moment," said the old hunter, 
^' and keep your eye on your dead Indian." 

The savage lay in the grass; only the 
tip of his shoulder was to be seen. The 
old hunter took careful aim and fired. 

Leaping to his feet with a howl of pain, 
the wily Indian ran off into the tall grass. 

" There goes your dead Indian, my boy. 
You will learn more about Indians as you 
grow older." 

Such were the days and nights on the 
frontier. Hundreds of the brave deeds 
done there have long ago been forgotten. 



58 



A FAMOUS TEA PARTY 

A LITTLE Boston girl, named Betty 
Endicott, was skipping along 
home from churcli, holding her 
father's hand. It was a cold, snotvy Sun- 
day morning late in November. Men were 
standing in the streets, talking over the 
news. 

'' Oh, father," cried Betty, '' see that 
crowd on Beacon HiU." 

^^ The tea ships are coming. The tea 
ships are coming," shouted some men and 
boys. 

^^Yes, Betty," said her father, as they 
hurried along, " the tea ships are sailing 
up the harbor. The east wind is cold and 
sharp. Button your cloak about you. 
Hurry home and tell the news to mamma." 
One night a few weeks later Betty lay 
59 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

in bed watching her mother sewing in the 
next room. Her father had been away all 
evening. 

'' What can keep papa out so late? " 
asked Mrs. Endicott. " But, Betty dear, 
you must go to sleep. Papa will be here 
soon.'' 

Just then the gate opened, the latch of 
the door was lifted, and in walked what 
seemed to be a big Indian. 

Mrs. Endicott screamed and nearly 
fainted. 

Betty jumped out of bed and ran to her 
mother. 

^' Don't be afraid, Mercy; it is only Joe," 
said a well-known voice. 

^< For pity's sake, Joe, what have you 
been doing? " asked Mrs. Endicott. 

** Not much, Mercy; I have only been 
to a tea party. The boys have been brew- 
ing a bit of salt-water tea." 

When Mr. Endicott pulled off his tall 
boots, some tea fell on the floor. 

60 



A FAMOUS TEA PARTY 

" Why, mother," cried Betty, " there is 
tea in papa's boots/' 

'' Don't touch the stuff," said Mr. Endi- 
cott, and he swept it into the fireplace. 

At the time of our story Massachusetts 
was a colony of England. The people 
were taxed by the English king, and did 
not like it. The taxes were then taken 
off everything except tea. 

'' We don't care for the tax of a few 
cents on a pound of tea," our people said; 
'^ but if we cannot help to make the laws, 
the king has no right to tax us at all." 

'' Buy the taxed tea, or go without," 
replied King George. 

The angry people did go without it. 

^' We will not have an ounce of this tea. 
It shall not be landed in our country." 

Early on the Monday morning after the 
tea ships came, the people gathered in the 
Old South Meetinghouse. The church and 
street were crowded. The meeting went 
on all day. 

61 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

^' Send the tea back," shouted one man. 

^^ Get rid of it. Throw it overboard," 
somebody cried from the gallery. 

^' The tea must be landed," the governor 
declared. 

u Try it if you dare," replied the people. 
" Ten thousand men will march into Bos- 
ton and drive the redcoats out." 

The morning of December sixteenth was 
cold and rainy. The people were again in 
the Old South Meetinghouse. The gov- 
ernor again refused to allow the tea ships 
to sail home. 

It was now five o'clock. A few candles 
had been brought in, and dimly lighted the 
church. 

As it grew dark, the crowd grew more 
and more excited. 

^' A mob, a mob! " somebody shouted. 

^' Did anybody ever think how tea would 
mix with salt water? " shouted John Rowe. 

The rafters of the old church fairly 
shook with the cheers. 

62 



A FAMOUS TEA PARTY 

Quietly and firmly then rose Samuel 
Adams, tlie patriot leader, and said, '^ This 
meeting can do nothing more to save the 
country." 

This was the signal that had been agreed 
on. 

A war whoop was heard in the street. 
A number of men dressed like Mohawk 
Indians, with axes in their hands, were 
seen running toward the wharf. 

An old song describes what took place: 

" Rally, Mohawks ! bring out your axes, 
And tell King George we'll pay no taxes 
On his foreign tea. 

His threats are vain, and vain to think. 
To force our girls and wives to drink 
His vile Boliea. 

Then rally, boys, and hasten on, 
To meet our chiefs at the Green Dragon.'^ 

Another popular song of the day tells 
how the tea was thrown overboard; 

" Quick as thought the ships were boarded. 
Hatches burst, and chests displayed; 
Axes, hammers, help afforded; 
What a glorious crash they made! 
63 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

" Then overboard she goes, my boys. 
In darkling waters roar; 
We love our cup of tea full well, 
But we love our freedom more.'^ 



The '' Mohawk Indians " did their work 
well. The blows of their axes were plainly 
heard by the crowds of people at the head 
of the wharf. When the tea had been de- 
stroyed, the decks were swept clean, and 
everything was put in order. 

The party now broke np. 

An English officer saw the whole affair 
from a house near the wharf. When the 
patriots were returning, he raised a win- 
dow and shouted, '^ Well, boys, you've had 
a fine evening for your Indian capers. But 
mind, you've got to pay the fiddler yet." 

'' All right, squire," shouted John Pitts; 
*^ just come out here, if you please, and 
we'll settle the bill in two minutes." 

The window was slammed down. The 
*' Indians " hastened on their way home. 

Such was the famous Boston Tea Party, 
64 



A FAMOUS TEA PARTY 



wMch took place nearly one hundred and 
fifty years ago. Swift riders carried the 
news everywhere. The people were filled 
with joy. Bells were rung and bonfires 
were lighted far and wide in the country 
towns. The patriots of Boston had defied 
the demands of an unjust king. 



65 



XI 

A CIRCLE OF STONES IN THE PAVEMENT 

THE Old State House in Boston is on 
Exchange Square, near the head 
of State Street. This is one of 
the most famous historic spots in the city. 
At the corner of Exchange Street, in the 
pavement of the square, may be seen a 
circle of granite blocks, ten feet in diame- 
ter. This circle marks the spot where in 
colonial days several Americans were shot 
and killed by British soldiers. 

The trouble occurred on the evening of 
March 5, 1770, a little more than five years 
before the battle of Lexington. 

George the Third of England was a self- 
ish young man of twenty-two when he 
came to the throne. He was eager to show 
his power. 

66 



A CIRCLE OF STONES IN THE PAVEMENT 

" The colonies in America belong to 
me/' he said. " They must pay their share 
of the war debt, and the cost of keeping 
my soldiers there/' 

" These colonies are getting rich too 
fast/' was the answer of his advisers. 
'' We need their money. They must trade 
with us." 

So at the close of the French and Indian 
War the American colonies were forced 
to XDay a tax on sugar, coffee, and many 
other things shipped from England to this 
country. 

In the year 1765 the Stamp Act was 
passed. By this law our people were 
forced to use stamped paper for deeds, 
notes, bills, and similar things. 

No wonder that bells w^ere tolled, flags 
put at half mast, and shops closed on 
the day the Stamp Act became a law. 

" You must pay the taxes," said King 
George. '' If you don't, I wdll send over 
my soldiers and make you do it." 

67 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

The quarrel grew more and more bitter. 

The king was as good as his word, and 
sent to Boston two regiments of British 
soldiers. 

The boys in the streets soon began to 
insult the soldiers, and the soldiers insulted 
the peaceable citizens. 

The king's tax collectors had a hard time 
of it. A crowd of boys pelted one of them 
with snowballs, and chased him into his 
house. 

The man was in no danger, but he lost 
his temper. He opened a window and fired 
his musket. iA. boy named Snider was 
killed, and another boy was badly wounded. 

'' This little hero and first martyr to the 
noble cause " was given a public funeral. 
Eive hundred school children and a large 
number of men and women were in the 
procession. 

** My eyes never saw such a funeral," 
said John Adams, who rode into town to 
attend the services. 

68 



A CIRCLE OF STONES IN THE PAVEMENT 

The tax collector was taken to prison. 

A few days later a quarrel took place in 
the Common, between some w^orkmen and 
the soldiers. The British had the worst 
of it. They swore they would have re- 
venge. A redcoat boasted that men would 
dine on Monday who would not eat on 
Tuesday. 

Some of the soldiers were friendly to 
the citizens, and warned them to keep in- 
doors at night. 

It was now the fifth of March, a clear, 
cold, winter evening with a bright moon. 
Crowds of men and boys stood on the 
street corners. Groups of soldiers were 
on the lookout. 

Some rowdies began to strike the red- 
coats with sticks, and pelt them with ice 
and snowballs. The soldiers hit back with 
clubs and guns. 

^^ Drive the lobsterbacks out. They have 
no business here," shouted the angry 
crowd. 

69 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

All at once the bell in the brick meet- 
inghouse close by began to ring. Citizens 
rushed into the streets with their fire 
buckets. 

''Fire! Fire! Where's the fire? ,Where 
is it? " they cried. 

a There is no fire," was the reply. '^ It's 
a fight with the soldiers. Don't bring your 
fire buckets; bring clubs." 

To the young men this seemed a kind 
of rough play. To the older and law-abid- 
ing citizens it looked like trouble. 

The British officer in command was Cap- 
tain Preston, a prudent and kind-hearted 
man. When matters grew worse, he hur- 
ried up the street with a file of soldiers. 

A hundred or more angry men and half- 
grown boys met them. 

'' Fire, you lobsterbacks," they yelled 
to the soldiers. " Fire if you dare." 

'' Go home, boys," shouted Captain 
Preston, '' lest there be some murder 
done." 

70 



A CIRCLE OF STONES IN THE PAVEMENT 

" Fire, fire, you cowards, '' again shouted 
the crowd. '' You don't dare to fire." 

All of a sudden the soldiers fired. They 
were probably ordered to do so by Cap- 
tain Preston. Nobody can say who gave 
the order. Five persons were killed, and 
several wounded. 

It was a wild night in Boston. Drums 
beat the long roll. The shouts of angry 
citizens were heard all over the town. The 
streets grew quiet after midnight, when 
news was brought that Captain Preston 
and his men had been put under arrest. 

There was great excitement the next 
dav. The streets near the Old South Meet- 
inghouse were crowded. The patriots held 
a meeting. A committee of seven men^ 
headed by Samuel Adams, was sent to wait 
on the royal governor, at the Old State 
House. They demanded that the British 
soldiers be removed from town. 

'^ I will send one regiment away, but not 
both," replied the Governor. 

71 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

With slow steps the committee walked 
back to the Old South Meetinghouse. 

^' Both regiments or none/' shouted 
three thousand patriots, when the question 
was put to vote. 

'Again the seven men went to the Old 
State House. This time the committee 
was not to be trifled with. 

Samuel Adams, the sturdy patriot, with 
powdered wig and his usual suit of reddish 
brown, stretched out his long right arm, 
and pointing his finger at the royal gov- 
ernor, said sharply, '' If you have power to 
send away one regiment, you have power 
to remove both. Three thousand free men 
demand it. They must be obeyed. Fail 
then, sir, at jouv peril." 

^^ I saw his knees tremble," said the old 
hero in after years, '' I saw his face grow 
pale, and I enjoyed the sight." 

Before sunset the order was given to 
send both regiments to Castle William, in 
Boston Harbor. 

72 



A CIRCLE OF STONES IN THE PAVEMENT 

Such is the story of the Boston Massacre, 
as it is called. 

'' On that night," said John Adams, 
*' the foundation of American independence 
was laid." 

Wise men saw that the time was com- 
ing when they must take up arms against 
the mother country, which they loved so 
well. 



73 



xn 

POLLY DAGGETT SAVES THE FLAGPOLE 

OFF the southeast coast of Massa- 
chusetts there is an island called 
Martha's Vineyard. On the island 
is the little village of Vineyard Haven, a 
snug and safe harbor well known to every 
sailor on that coast. 

During our war for freedom from Eng- 
land the people on the island were sturdy 
patriots. Shortly after the battle of Lex- 
ington the leading men of the village sent 
to Maine and bought a big pine tree for 
a flagpole. 

They raised the pole on a little hill just 
outside of the village. 

There was a lively time in the little sea- 
port town when the flag was first unfurled. 
A few old soldiers marched to the hill. 

74 



POLLY DAGGETT SAVES THE FLAGPOLE 

The young men with their fife and drum 
played the stirring and patriotic tune of 
the day, *^ The White Cockade and the 
Peacock's Feather." Children were in the 
procession, too, dressed in their Sunday 
clothes, with their hands full of flowers. 

The flagpole had been there only a few 
weeks when the British frigate Vixen came 
sailing into the harbor. She had lost a 
mast in a storm, and came into Vineyard 
Haven in search of a new one. The first 
officer, Lieutenant Dix, landed with a boat 
full of men. 

" We are bound for Charleston," said 
the lieutenant, " and we need that flagpole 
for a mast. We can pay you well for it. 
If you will not sell it, we shall have to 
take it by force." 

What could the people do? 

Only a few old men and sailors were 
left in the village. Most of the young men 
were at Boston, in Washington's army. 
Besides, the officer would pay a goodly 

75 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

price in gold. So it was voted to sell the 
flagpole. 

'' Very well," said Lieutenant Dix, 
*^ here is your money. My ship carpenters 
will come ashore in the morning." 

When Grandfather Daggett came home 
to dinner that day and told the family 
what had happened, the women were 
greatly excited about it. Polly Daggett, 
the granddaughter, a sturdy young patriot 
of sixteen, was very angry. 

** That British officer shall never have 
our flagpole if I can help it," she cried, and 
her black eyes flashed. 

Now Polly Daggett was a smart girl. 
She ran across the beach to have a talk 
with her two chums, Bessie Mckerson and 
Nancy Freeman. That afternoon the three 
girls had a secret meeting in an old whale- 
boat by the wharf. 

^' There is a big auger in grandpa's boat- 
house," said Polly, '* but what shall we do 
for powder? " 

76 



POLLY DAGGETT SAVES THE FLAGPOLE 

'' Father has his big powderhorn full 
of powder in the closet near the fireplace," 
replied Bessie Mckerson; '' I can easily 
get it." 

" Now, Nancy," said Polly, '' see if you 
cannot find some wadding and some candle 
wicks for a fuse." 

" All right, Polly; mother made candles 
last week, and there are a few wicks left. 
I will bring them." 

Shortly after dark the three girls might 
have been seen taking a short cut through 
the fields and across the sand dunes to 
the hilltop. 

Polly was a strong girl and knew how to 
use the auger. She bored three holes into 
the soft pine pole. Then with a pewter 
spoon she filled each hole with powder, 
put in the wicks for a fuse, and with a 
piece of a broomstick rammed down the 
wadding. At last all was ready. 

Halfway down the hiU lived an old lady, 
Aunt Deborah Baker. Polly and Aunt 

77 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

Deborah were good friends, and the girls 
had told her their secret. 

Polly now ran down the hill to Aunt 
Deborah ^s cottage, and came back with a 
little iron kettle full of live coals. She 
quickly lighted the wicks, and cried to 
her companions, " Now, then, girls, run for 
Aunt Deborah's as fast as you can." 

She seized her iron kettle, and all three 
girls took to their heels. A moment later, 
out of breath and much excited, they were 
seated before the great fireplace in Aunt 
Deborah's kitchen. 

They had not long to wait. 

'' Bang! Bang! Bang! " went the three 
blasts. 

The people afterwards said that every 
house in the village seemed to shake. At 
all events, the explosion splintered the flag- 
pole and ruined it. 

The British came the next day for the 
new mast. The captain of the warship 
was angry to find the flagpole in splinters. 

78 



POLLY DAGGETT SAVES THE FLAGPOLE 

Lieutenant Dix came ashore. 

The town fathers told him that some of 
the bad boys in the village must have de- 
stroyed the pole. Of course they tried to 
find out who had played such a trick, but 
they could not learn anything about it. 
Aunt Deborah said nothing, but quietly 
smiled. 

The British frigate sailed for New York. 

The three girls kept their secret for 
several years. Not until the war w^as over 
did they tell the story of how they pre- 
vented the British officers from using their 
beloved flagpole for a mast. 

In 1898 the Daughters of the American 
Revolution put up a liberty pole on the 
same spot where the old pole stood so 
many years before. A bronze tablet tells 
the story of Polly Daggett's bold deed, 
and how she did her best to serve her 
country in the trying days of the Revolu- 
tion. 



79 



xin 

PEGGY WHITE CALLS ON LORD CORNWALLIS 

DUEINGr our war for freedom the 
British captured a thousand of 
our men at the battle of Camden, 
in South Carolina. Among the prisoners 
was a young captain named Joshua White. 
The news made Captain White's family 
very unhappy. There were five children, 
and the mother was sick in bed. 

Peggy, the oldest child, was fifteen. She 
was a fearless little patriot. She dearly 
loved her father. She liked to hear of his 
brave fighting under the gallant General 
Sumter. 

Now all Avas changed. Some friend 
brought word that her father was starving 

80 



PEGGY WHITE CALLS ON LORD CORNWALLIS 

in the prison at Camden. The young girl 
was greatly excited. 

'' Father is not going to starve, if I can 
help it,'' she declared, in her girlish wrath. 
'^ I am going to ride over to Camden and 
see about it." 

'' No, no, Peggy," replied her mother; 
*^ it is thirty-five miles, and the roads are 
full of British soldiers. I cannot let you 
go." 

'' But, mother," said Peggy, " father 
must not go hungry. I will go straight to 
Lord Cornwallis. I know he will let me 
carry food to father." 

'' No, dear child, you would never get a 
chance to speak to so great a man as Lord 
Cornwallis. He would never bother to see 
a young girl like you. Let us wait awhile. 
Your father may escape. I am sure he 
would never want you to risk your life in 
this way." 

'' Well, mother, I'll tell you what I am 
going to do. I will ride on Kitty, my sad- 

81 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

die horse, and take old Pompey with me. 
He can ride on one of the work horses, 
and carry a basket of food." 

At last her mother consented. 

Before sunrise the next day Peggy and 
Pompey, an old negro servant, started off 
on their ride to the camp of Lord Corn- 
wallis. By taking short cuts through the 
woods, and hiding when straggling soldiers 
passed by, they traveled safely all day. 

Late in the afternoon they came in sight 
of the British general's headquarters. 

'' Please, sir, I wish to speak to General 
CornwalUs," Peggy said to the guard. 

'^ No," said the sentinel; '' you cannot 
see him. This is no place for you. His 
lordship is too busy to talk with you. So 
run along home. And as for you, you old 
darkey, be off right quickly, or you'll be 
put in the guardhouse." 

Peggy was not a bit afraid of the tall 
sentinel. 

" But, sir," she said, '^1 have come on 
82 



^ *JS 



.*►, 




PLEASE, SIR, I WISH TO SPExVK'tO GENERAL CORNWALLIS,' 
PEGGY SAID TO THE GUARD. Page 82. 



PEGGY WHITE CALLS ON LORD CORNWALLIS 

horseback a long way to see the general. 
I must see Mm for a moment. Please let 
me pass.'' 

The guard lost his temper, and spoke 
harshly to her. 

Lord Cornwallis was sitting in his room 
making plans for the war. The loud talk- 
ing of the sentinel at the porch disturbed 
him. 

'' Go and find out what that talk is 
about/' he said to one of his officers; ^^ I 
wdsh to be quiet." 

" Your lordship," said the officer, on his 
return, ^Mt is a young girl with an old 
negro servant, and she says she must 
speak to you." 

" Let the young miss come in." 

No doubt Peggy's courage failed her, 
and she blushed and began to stammer 
when she took her first look at the famous 
man. How fine he must have seemed in 
his scarlet uniform with its lace and gold 
buttons ! 

83 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

But the general treated Ms guest with 
great kindness. 

^' Don't be afraid, little miss; there is 
nobody to do you any harm. I have a 
little girl of my own in England. What 
can I do for you? " 

^' Oh, sir, my poor father is in prison, 
at Camden, and is awfully hungry. I have 
brought some goodies for him in this 
basket. Please may I carry it to him? " 

In a few minutes Peggy had told Lord 
Cornwallis the whole story of her long ride, 
of her father at Camden, of her sick 
mother, and of the four little children at 
home. 

The British general listened to her sim- 
ple but pathetic words. His heart was 
touched. 

He patted her on the head, and taking 
her by the hand, said, '' Dear little girl, 
you may carry the food to your father this 
evening, and to-morrow he may go home 
with you." 

84 



PEGGY WHITE CALLS ON LORD CORNWALLIS 

We do not know how Peggy was able 
to thank Lord Cornwallis for his kindness. 

Of course there was a joyful time at 
the plantation when Peggy, father, and old 
Pompey came home. 

Captain ^Hiite was so proud of his 
brave little daughter that he had a pair of 
gold earrings made for her by the village 
locksmith. 

Peggy lived many years. In her old 
age nothing pleased her more than to show 
her homemade earrings to her grandchil- 
dren, and tell them of her long ride and 
of her call on Lord Cornwallis. 



85 



XIV 

BEXJAMIX FRAXKLIN 

THE famous Benjamin Franklin was 
bom in Boston, in 1706. His 
father and mother were jDOor, but 
brought up a family of thirteen children and 
seven grandchildren. His father earned a 
living by making soap and candles. 

In those early days even little children 
helped to support the family. So when 
young Ben was ten years old, he was taken 
from school to work in his father's shop. 
He cut the wicks for candles, and filled 
the molds with hot tallow. Sometimes he 
tended the shop, or ran errands. 

Like many other boys, he wanted to be 
a sailor. He lived near the water, and was 
fond of swinuning and of managing boats. 

86 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

" You would never do for a sailor, my 
son," said liis father; " liow should you 
like to be a printer? " 

The boy was pleased, and in due time 
began to learn the printer's trade in the 
oiSce of his brother James. 

For a time young Ben was happy. His 
spare moments he devoted to reading. 
What few pennies he had, he spent for use- 
ful books. 

^^ If you will give me half of what it 
costs to board me, I will board myself,'' 
he said to his brother. 

James was only too glad to do this. 

Thus the young printer saved money and 
bought books. 

He ate his dinner at the shop. This meal 
was often nothing more than a biscuit or 
a slice of bread, a handful of raisins or a 
tart, and a glass of water. The rest of 
the noon hour, until the workmen came 
back, he had for study. 

Brother James printed a little news- 
87 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

paper called the New England Courant. 
This was the fourth newspaper ever 
printed in this country. 

The young brother began to write some 
pieces for it. For fear that his brother 
would find out who wrote them, he used 
to slip them at night under the door of 
the office. Sometimes he wrote little bal- 
lads on topics of the day, and sold them 
about the streets of Boston. 

Now Ben and his brother did not get 
along very well together. Ben was some- 
times saucy. But James had a bad temper, 
and often abused him when he did not 
deserve it. 

When only seventeen years old, the 
yoimg printer made up his mind to run 
away. He sold some of his books to raise 
a little money, packed up a few clothes, 
and sailed for New York. 

Three days afterwards he landed, but 
could find no work. He then set out for 
Philadelphia. 

88 



BENJAMIN FRANKLTX 

He made the trip partly by boat and 
partly on foot. After a good many mis- 
haps and hardships he reached the city, 
on a Sunday morning in October, with no 
money but one silver dollar and a shilling 
in coppers. He wore knee breeches of 
buckskin, and a huge coat, the pockets of 
which were '' stuffed out with shirts and 
spare stockings." 

He was so hungry that he hurried to the 
nearest bakeshop and bought '' three great 
puffy rolls of bread." Carrying a roll 
under each arm, and eating the third, he 
took his way down the street. 

A young Quaker girl, named Deborah 
Read, happened to see him as he passed 
by her father's house. She laughed aloud 
at his queer figure. 

Franklin continued to eat the roll, and 
walked to the river for a drink of water. 
On his way back he followed some Quakers 
into one of their meetings. He was so 
tired that he fell asleep. He slept till the 

89 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

meeting broke up, when somebody was 
kind enough to wake him. 

In a few days Franklin was busy at his 
trade. Unlike many other young fellows 
of his time, he was never idle. He spent 
his spare moments in study and reading. 
He made friends everywhere. In 1729, 
when he was twenty-three years old, he 
began to publish a newspaper of his own, 
called the Pennsylvania Gazette, It soon 
became one of the best papers in the 
country. 

In 1730 Franklin married Deborah Head, 
the young woman who had laughed at him 
on the morning that he arrived in Phila- 
delphia. 

In the story of his own life Franklin 
writes of his thrifty young wife : 

'* We have an English proverb that says, 
' He that would thrive, must ask his wife.' 
It was lucky for me that I had one as 
much disposed to industry and frugality 
as myself. She assisted me cheerfully in 

90 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

my business, folding and stitching pam- 
phlets, tending shop, purchasing old linen 
rags for the paper makers, etc., etc. We 
kept no idle servants, our table was plain 
and simple, our furniture of the cheapest. 
For instance, my breakfast was a long time 
bread and milk (no tea), and I ate it out 
of a twopenny earthen porringer, with a 
pewter spoon. But mark how luxury will 
enter families, and make a progress, in 
spite of principle: being called one morn- 
ing to breakfast, I found it in a china 
bowl, with a spoon of silver! They had 
been bought for me without my knowledge 
by my wife, and had cost her the enormous 
sum of three-and-twenty shillings, for 
which she had no other excuse or apology 
to make, but that she thought her husband 
deserved a silver spoon and china bowl 
as well as any of his neighbors." 

Benjamin Franklin lived to a good old 
age, and served his country in many ways, 
both at home and abroad. From poverty, 

91 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

ignorance, and obscurity, he arose to 
wealth, learning, and renown. As printer, 
journalist, statesman, diplomat, scientist, 
and philosopher, he was one of the most 
famous men of his time. But whatever he 
did, he tried to do for the welfare and 
happiness of his fellow men. 



92 



XV 

"POOR RICHARD'S ALMANAC" 

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN was first 
made famous by his '^ Poor Rich- 
ard's Almanac." In those early 
days the annual ahnanac was to be found 
in almost every household. It generally 
hung near the fireplace, within easy reach 
of any member of the family who was able 
to read. 

The almanac told about the weather, the 
crops, and the domestic animals. It gave 
household recipes, important dates and 
events, and similar things. 

Money was scarce, but the people felt 
that they must have an almanac. Thrifty 
housekeepers used to exchange home-knit 
articles, such as mittens and stockings, for 
the much-needed book. Sometimes, they 

93 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

say, even the copper teakettle was given 
for it. 

Franklin published the first number of 
'^ Poor Eichard's Almanac " in 1732, the 
year that Washington was born. It was 
a great success. Besides useful informa- 
tion, it contained proverbs, maxims, and 
other common-sense advice. 

Poor Richard's sayings soon became 
household words throughout the land. 
They are so common in our own everyday 
speech that most of us have forgotten who 
made them. 

In the story of his own life Franklin 
teUs us how he tried to make his almanac 
benefit and educate the people: 

^* Observing that the almanac was gen- 
erally read, scarcely any neighborhood in 
the province being without it, I considered 
it as a proper vehicle for conveying in- 
struction among the common people, v/ho 
bought scarcely any other books; I there- 
fore filled all the little spaces that occurred 

94 



"POOR RICHARD'S ALMANAC* 

between the remarkable days in the calen- 
dar with proverbial sentences, chiefly such 
as inculcated industry and frugality, as a 
means of procuring wealth, and thereby 
securing virtue; it being more difficult for 
a man in want, to act always honestly, as, 
to use here one of those proverbs, * It is 
hard for an empty sack to stand upright.' '' 

Frankhn was too honest to claim that 
he made up all the maxims in Poor Rich- 
ard. ^' Not a tenth part of the wisdom," 
he once said, '^ was my own, but rather the 
gleanings I had made of the sense of all 
ages and nations." With his own quaint 
humor, sparkling wit, w^orldly wisdom, and 
sound common sense, he wrote these say- 
ings in such a way that they could be 
understood by everybody. Poor Richard's 
sayings have been translated into many 
languages. It is said that perhaps more 
people have read them than any other 
book in the world except the Bible. 

We will close our story with some of 
95 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

these famous proverbs. Let us think them 
over and commit them to memory. If we 
do so, and abide by their teaching, they 
will help us to live happier and more use- 
ful lives. 

POOR EICHAED'S SAYINGS 

A small leak will sink a great ship. 

The second vice is lying, the first is run- 
ning in debt. 

One to-day is worth two to-morrows. 

iWant of care does more damage than want 
of knowledge. 

He that goes a borrowing goes a sorrowing. 

Constant dropping wears away stones. 

Then plough deep while sluggards sleep, 

And you shall have corn to sell and to keep. 

God helps them that help themselves. 

Sloth makes all things difficult, but indus- 
try all easy. 

Lost time is never found again. 

Eather go to bed supperless than rise in 
debt. 

96 



"POOR RICHARD'S ALMANAC* 

He that by the plough would thrive, 

Himself must either hold or drive. 

A word to the wise is enough, and many 

words won't fill a bushel. 
Early to bed, and early to rise, 
Makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise. 
The sleeping fox catches no poultry. 
Laziness travels so slowly, that poverty 

soon overtakes him. 
If you would have your business done, go; 

if not, send. 
For age and want, save while you may; 
No morning sun lasts a whole day. 



97 



XYl 

239 ARCH STREET 

SOME day you may visit the city of 
Philadelphia. When you go there, 
you will wish to see the little brick 
house at 239 Arch Street. This house was 
built before Washington was born. It is 
said that the bricks were brought from 
England in one of William Penn's ships, 
more than two hundred years ago. 

You will be interested to see the wide 
doors, the small panes of glass in the win- 
dows, and the quaint pictures on the tiles 
at the fireplace. 

But this house has a story more inter- 
esting than its odd looks. That is why 
hundreds of visitors every year from all 

98 



239 ARCH STREET 

over our loved land go to tliis spot when 
they pass through the good old Quaker 
city. 

Our story begins on a warm, sunn}^ 
morning in June, in the year 1777. In the 
little brick house at 239 Arch Street lived 
a young Quaker woman named Betsy Ross. 

On this bright June morning every nook 
and corner about the place was as neat 
and clean as the tidy yomig housekeeper 
could make it. General Washington had 
sent word to her that he was coming to 
call, to see about the making of a flag. 
On July 4, 1776, the American colonies 
had declared their freedom, in the great 
Declaration of Independence. It was now 
time that this new nation had a flag of its 
own. 

The clock in a neighboring church had 
just struck twelve, when the dignified 
commander in chief of the army and the 
famous banker, Robert Morris, were in- 
vited into Betsy Ross's tiny back parlor. 

99 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

Soon the stiff, formal greetings between 
the great men and their timid hostess were 
over. Washington then took from his 
pocket a sketch of a flag. 

^^ We are told, madam," he said, " that 
you do the finest needlework in the city. 
Here is a rough drawing of a flag. It has 
thirteen stripes, seven red and six white, 
with a circle of thirteen white stars in a 
blue field. Do you think you can make 
the flag we need? " 

^' I am not sure. General Washington, 
but I will do my best to please you." 

" I must ask you, madam," continued 
Washington, '^ to make the stars as I have 
drawn them." 

** But, General Washington, the stars in 
the sky seem to have five points, and 
yours have six. Permit me, sir, to show 
you what I mean." 

With a single clip of her scissors she cut 
out a perfect five-pointed star. 

^' My good woman, I have no doubt you 
100 




WITH A SINGLE C LIT oJ' IIKU SC ISSOKS SHE Cl'T Ol^T A 
PERFECT FIVE POINTED STAR. Page 100. 



339 ARCH STREET 

are right," said General Washington. 
" You may make for us a sample flag as 
I have directed, but let the stars have five 
points." 

With stately bows and formal words of 
farewell the gentlemen now took their 
leave. 

Never did Betsy Ross do finer needle- 
work, and her beautiful flag Avas accepted 
for the nation. 

Wlien Vermont and Kentucky came into 
the Union, the stars and the stripes were 
increased to fifteen. After a time other 
new states were admitted, and new stars 
and new stripes were going to be added to 
the flag. 

But the people did not like to have so 
many changes made in the flag. 

'^ This will never do," they said. '' There 
are too many stars and stripes. It will 
mar our flag." 

So it was decided that after July 4, 1818, 
there should be only thirteen stripes, for 

101 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

the thirteen original states; but that when 
a new state was admitted into the Union, 
a new star should be added. 

One by one new stars have taken their 
place, until to-day there are forty-eight in 
the field of blue. 



102 



xvn 

EMILY GEIGER'S DARING RIDE 

DURING the first three years of the 
War of the Revolution, South 
Carolina was overrun by British 
soldiers. The people had to endure many 
perils and hardships. The British officers 
took possession of the great plantations, 
while their owners lived in the swamps and 
elsewhere as best they could. 

In the year 1781 the redcoats were 
slowly being driven from their strongholds 
in the South. One of the most important 
of these places was the fort called Mnety- 
six. Greneral Greene planned to capture 
this, but was forced to retreat, with the 
British in hot pursuit. 

Soon afterwards the patriot scouts found 
out that the British forces had divided. 
General Greene now got ready to make 
103 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

a quick attack. But lie must send word 
to General Sumter, a hundred miles away, 
to come and join liim. Som.ebody would 
have to pass through the British lines to 
reach Sumter's camp. The messenger 
might be captured. There were deep 
woods to go through, and swamps and 
rivers to cross. The redcoats and Tories 
were on guard at every turn of the road. 
At best the trip would take two days and 
a night of hard travel. 

At this time there lived in this region 
a brave young girl of eighteen named 
Emily Geiger. Her father was a stanch 
patriot, but was too old and feeble to 
serve in the army. 

As soon as Emily heard that a mes- 
senger was needed, she did not say a word 
about it to her people, but rode over to 
General Greene's headquarters. 

'' If you will trust me. General Greene, 
I will carry your message to General Sum- 
ter. I am not afraid of the redcoats or 

104 



EMILY GEIGER'S DARING RIDE 

the Tories. Tliey will not harm me. I 
will go when you say the word." 

^' No/' said the general. '^ The trip is 
too full of danger for a young girl like you. 
You will surely come to some harm." 

" Let me try," was her eager reply. 
" My horse is the swiftest and strongest 
in South Carolina." 

Her faith in herself won his consent, and 
he handed her his letter to General Sumter. 

'^ Now, Emily, you are likely to be cap- 
tured, and so you must commit my letter 
to memory. If you are made prisoner, you 
must destroy it, but be able to repeat it 
word for w^ord to General Sumter." 

Early on the next morning the girl 
started on her long and perilous ride. She 
rode swiftly all day. At midnight she 
came to the edge of a dried-up swamp. 

^' Halt," came quick and sharp the chal- 
lenge from a soldier as he raised his gun. 

Two other soldiers were sitting on a log 
with their muskets ready to fire. 

105 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

'' You have no right to stop me,'^ she 
cried; ^^ I must ride on." 

*^ No, no. Perhaps you come from Gen- 
eral Greene's army." 

The scouts led her into a house close by 
and locked her in a room. They then 
went to find a Tory woman to search their 
prisoner. 

Emily was left alone for a few minutes. 
She took the letter from her pocket, tore it 
into bits, and swallowed the pieces. 

Soon the redcoats came back with an old 
woman, who began to search the girl. She 
ripped open the linings of her clothing, 
but found nothing. 

The young girl's coolness and quiet good 
nature misled them, and they allowed her 
to ride on her way. 

Late on the same day she was again held 
up, this time by Tories. They took her to 
an old farmhouse. 

At midnight, when even the guards were 

sound asleep, she climbed out of a window 

106 



EMILY GEIGER'S DARING RIDE 

and dropped to the ground. She found a 
bridle and her own horse in the pasture. 
Without a saddle she mounted and gal- 
loped off in the darkness. 

About daylight she made her way to 
the house of a patriot friend. After a 
good breakfast, a fresh horse was given 
her. She was then told of a shorter and 
safer road to Sumter's camp. 

Later that day she met some patriot 
scouts. 

" Guide me at once to General Sumter," 
she said; '' I have a message for him from 
General Greene." 

'' What can I do for you? " asked the 
great Southern general, when the girl ap- 
peared before him. 

Emily was so weary that she could 
hardly speak. At last she told her story, 
and repeated what was written in the 
letter. 

In less than an hour Sumter's little army 
was on the march. 

107 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

As the story goes, General Greene gave 
the fair girl a pair of gold earrings and 
a brooch, which are still kept in the 
family. 

More than thirty years afterwards Gen- 
eral Lafayette, the famous French soldier 
who helped us in the Revolution, visited 
this country. He met our heroine and 
danced with her, at a grand ball at Colum- 
bia, the capital of South Carolina. He also 
gave her a beautiful silk shawl as a souve- 
nir of her patriotism. 



108 



XYin 

LIFE IN THE WILDERNESS 

WHEN our war for freedom began, 
Kentucky was being settled by- 
brave men and women who went 
there to make homes for themselves. To 
reach this distant land they could go down 
the Ohio River, or follow the Wilderness 
Road, a famous trail made by Daniel 
Boone. 

Families often banded together to take 
up their march over the mountains and 
into the deep forests. The larger boys 
drove the cattle. The little children were 
packed in cradles made of hickory limbs, 
and slung across the backs of horses. The 
women rode on horseback. Sometimes 
they walked, with a baby in their arms. 

109 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

The men, with their rifles at hand, drove 
the pack train, or watched for the Indians. 

At night a shelter of brush was made for 
the women and children. The men rolled 
themselves up in blankets and slept on the 
open ground. 

When the settlers reached Kentucky, 
they had much to do. The ax and the 
rifle were in constant use. Log cabins 
must be built. The big trees must be cut 
down, and the ground must be made ready 
to plant corn. 

Until the com was ripe, the men hunted, 
and the families lived on the game, which 
was plentiful. In the winter the wild meat 
was often poor eating. Sometimes a fat 
bear was discovered in a hollow tree, and 
the people had a feast. If the corn failed, 
the meat from the breast of wild turkeys 
was eaten in the place of bread. 

There is a little river in Kentucky called 

Dreaming Creek. They say it was so 

named because Daniel Boone once fell 

110 



LIFE IN THE WILDERNESS 

asleep on its bank, and dreamed that he 
was stung by yellow hornets. Here in a 
log cabin, amid the deep woods, lived a 
family by the name of Kirby. In the 
family w^ere father and mother and three 
little children. 

ISTow all the dangers of frontier life did 
not come from the Indians. The woods 
were full of wdld beasts. When pinched 
by hunger, wolves, bears, and panthers 
often lay in wait near the houses of 
the settlers, to attack children and even 
grown-up people. 

One morning in early spring Mr. Kirby 
took down his rifle and made ready to 
go hunting. 

'' Now^, Martha, don't let the children 
go outside the cabin to-day. Bears are 
ugly this time of the year, and there are 
plenty of them round. Keep a sharp 
lookout." 

The day was warm and sunny. It 
seemed as if the birds had never sung so 

111 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

sweetly. Early wild flowers were in bloom 
on the edge of the forest. 

Before Mrs. Kirby knew it, all three 
children had slipped from the cabin and 
were out of sight in the w^oods. 

'' Dear me, if those children haven't 
scampered off somewhere. I'll go and look 
for them this very minute." 

Just as she said this, there came a cry 
from the little boy. 

^' Oh, mother! Mother! Come quick, 
there's a bear after Hattie." 

Mrs. Kirby ran to the door, nearly 
fainting with fear. All three children were 
screaming and running toward the cabin. 
Close behind them came a big bear. 

Like all frontier women of that time, 
Mrs. Kirby knew how to use a gun. She 
seized a big pistol from its place over the 
stone fireplace, and hurried out. She was 
just in time. The bear was lame, but had 
almost caught the youngest child. 

With a snarl the beast turned and 
112 



LIFE IN THE WILDERNESS 

started toward Mrs. Kirby. She calmly 
faced the animal, took good aim, and fired. 
The lead slugs hit the bear in the head 
and stunned him. The mother caught up 
her child and ran for the cabin. In another 
moment all were safe inside, and the stout 
oak door was shut. 

Mr. Kirby was not far away in the 
woods when he heard the shot. 

'^ "What can be the matter at home?" 
he cried. 

He hurried back, and was glad enough 
to find that all were safe and well. 

'' First of all," he said, '^ I must finish 
Mr. Bruin." 

A bullet from the big rifle put an end 
to the bear. When they looked over the 
body, they found that some hunter had 
shot the animal on the foreleg. That was 
why he could not run faster. 

^^ I think the bear w^as so lame," said 
Mr. Kirby, '' that he had hard w^ork to 
get enough to eat; perhaps that is the rea- 

113 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

son why he chased the children in broad 
daylight. If he had not been lame, he 
would probably have killed one or all of 
them." 



114 



XIX 

"REMEMBER THE ALAMO" 

"Be sure you are right, then go ahead." 

David Crockett. 

TEXAS was once a part of Mexico. 
The country was tliinly settled. 
The Mexicans welcomed people 
from the United States, and gave them 
large tracts of land. After a while about 
twenty thousand of our people were living 
there. The Mexicans became jealous, and 
said that no others should be admitted. 

The people of Texas did not like to be 
ruled by Mexico. In the year 1833 they 
asked to have their freedom. The Mexi- 
cans refused, and sent soldiers to guard 
the country. But in March, 1836, the peo- 
ple declared themselves free, and drove 
the soldiers out. 
A cruel soldier by tKe name of Santa 
115 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

Anna was now the jDresident of Mexico. 
He got together a large army and marched 
into Texas. 

Hundreds of backwoodsmen and Indian 
fighters from the South and West rushed 
to help the Texans in their fight for lib- 
erty. 

It w^as not long before Santa Anna at- 
tacked the town of San Antonio. 

Inside the town was a Spanish mission, 
called the Alamo. Like other Spanish 
missions in the region, the Alamo was a 
kind of rude fortress. Within its great 
walls were a stone church, a convent, and 
other small buildings. The walls of the 
church were five feet thick and twenty- 
two feet high. The building w^as about a 
hundred years old. It w^as without a roof, 
and almost in ruins. Small cannon were 
mounted on the walls. 

When the Mexican army arrived, the 

little garrison of San Antonio had time to 

retreat to the Alamo. 

116 



"REMEMBER THE ALAMO" 

Santa Anna sent word to the rebels to 
surrender. 

Colonel Travis was in command. He 
was a young lawyer from North Carolina, 
a tall, red-headed fighter, just twenty-eight 
years old. 

*' I shall never surrender or retreat," 
was his reply to Santa Anna. 

Second in command was Colonel Bowie, 
inventor of the famous bowie knife. At 
this time he was sick in bed, but, as it 
proved, not too ill to fight. 

In the nick of time in tramped the heroic 
David Crockett with '' Betsy," his famous 
long rifle. With him came twelve riflemen 
from the wilds of Tennessee. They were 
all armed with long rifles and bowie knives, 
and dressed in buckskin suits and coon- 
skin ca|)s. 

One dark night thirty-two riflemen on 

horseback from a garrison close by cut 

their way to the Alamo. 

Three Tiundred men from a garrison two 
117 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

hundred miles awaj^ started for the Alamo, 
but were forced to turn back. Their 
leader, a schoolboy friend of Colonel 
Travis, made his way alone through the 
Mexican lines at midnight and reached the 
stone church. 

Santa Anna at first made little headway. 
The men in the Alamo kept up a brisk fire 
with their rifles and cannon. But they 
were fighting against fearful odds, one 
hundred and sixty-six against five thou- 
sand well-trained Mexican soldiers. 

Travis wrote his last letter. '^ I shall 
hold the place," he said, '' until I get re- 
lief for my people, or I shall perish in the 
attempt." 

On one of the last days of the siege he 

called his men together and made a short 

speech: ^^ There is no hope of help. Death 

stares us in the face. There is nothing to 

do but to sell our lives as dearly as we can. 

Whoever is willing to die like a man, let 

him cross this line." 

118 



"REMEMBER THE ALAMO" 

Calmly and silently every man stepped 
across the line and stood beside the leader. 
Colonel Bowie had himself lifted across in 
his bed. 

" We will stay and die with you," cried 
the men, as they went to their places on 
the outer wall. 

The siege lasted eleven days. The rifle- 
men in the Alamo put up a desperate fight. 
The Mexicans had heavy cannon with 
which they kept up a furious bombard- 
ment. 

The riflemen crept up after dark and 
picked off the men at the cannon. As the 
story is told, David Crockett with his 
famous gun killed five men at one cannon. 

Little by little the walls of the old stone 
church were riddled with cannon balls. 
No doubt the Texans could have cut their 
way out at night, but nobody dared even 
to hint at such a thing. 

Sunday morning, the sixth of May, 1836, 
was the time chosen by Santa Anna to 

119 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

storm the church. The Mexican bugles 
sounded at sunrise. 

With ladders, axes, and crowbars, 
twenty -five himdred Mexicans charged 
against the outer walls of the mission. 
They were met with a deadly fire of shot 
and shell. Not until their third trial were 
they able to climb over the walls. 

The Texans now retreated to the convent 
and the shattered walls of the church. 

Here a terrible hand-to-hand fight took 
place. The Mexicans used their muskets 
and lances. The Americans fired their 
long rifles and pistols, and made havoc 
with their bowie knives. 

One by one these heroic men fell fight- 
ing to the last. 

We are told that David Crockett was 
the last to die. Using his gun as a club, 
he stood at bay with his back to the wall 
of the church. No Mexican dared to come 
near him. At last he fell, weak from the 
loss of blood from a dozen wounds. 

120 



"REMEMBER THE ALAMO 



Santa Anna did not Kve long to enjoy 
Ms victory. Within a few weeks the gal- 
lant General Sam Houston, at the head of 
about seven hundred and fifty riflemen, 
shouting their battle cry, ** Remember the 
Alamo," routed the Mexican troops and 
captured their leader. 

Texas now became a free state. On 
the porch of the Capitol, in Austin, was 
built a monument out of stone from the 
ruined church of the Alamo. Engraved 
on the east side of the shaft were the 
f ollow^ing words : 

i' Thermopylae had her messengers of 
death, but the Alamo had none." 



121 



XX 

LINCOLN'S ADDRESS AT GETTYSBURG 

THE greatest event in the history 
of our country was the War of 
the Revolution. This was the 
struggle in which the colonies won their 
freedom from England. 

The next greatest event was our Civil 
War, between the North and the South. 

The cause of the Civil War was slavery. 
In the South the plantations were culti- 
vated by Negro slaves. This had been 
done for more than two hundred years. 

The Southern people believed that the 
Constitution of the United States gave the 
right to have slavery in every part of our 
land. The people of the North did not 
agree with them. Thus a dispute arose 
about the meaning of the Constitution. 
In the year 1860 Abraham Lincoln was 
122 



LINCOLN'S ADDRESS AT GETTYSBURG 

elected President. Soon after his election 
some of the Southern states separated from 
the other states, and set up a government 
of their own. 

Many people in the North felt that they 
had the right to do so. 

Horace Greeley, editor of the New York 
Tribune^ wrote, " If the cotton states shall 
decide that they can do better out of the 
Union than in it, we insist on letting them 
go in peace." 

Abraham Lincoln hated war, but he be- 
lieved that it was his duty to preserve the 
Union. When he made his first address 
as President, he appealed to the South to 
remain in the Union. 

*^ We are not enemies," he said, ^^ but 
friends. We must not be enemies. 
Though passion may have strained, it must 
not break our bonds of affection. The 
mystic cords of memory, stretching from 
every battle-field and patriot grave to every 
living heart and hearthstone all over this 

123 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

broad land, will yet swell the chorus of 
the Union when again touched, as surely 
they will be, by the better angels of our 
nature.'' 

But the appeal was in vain. On the 
morning of the twelfth of April, 1861, the 
Southerners fired on Fort Sumter, in the 
harbor of Charleston, South Carolina. 
Thus began a bitter and bloody war which 
was to last for four years. 

The greatest battle of the war was 
fought at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on 
Northern soil. This was in the summer 
of 1863. The battle lasted three days, and 
cost the lives of many thousands of men. 

The first two days ended in favor of the 
Southerners. But on the third day the tide 
of battle turned. On this day took place 
the most dramatic scene of the entire war. 
The gallant General Pickett, of the South- 
ern army, led the famous charge up Ceme- 
tery Eidge, to dislodge the Northern 
troops, but was defeated with heavy losses. 

124 



LINCOLN'S ADDRESS AT GETTYSBURG 

The battle of Gettysburg was the turn- 
ing point of the war. 

In November of this year, before a large 
gathering of people, a part of the battle- 
field at Gettysburg was dedicated as a 
National Cemetery. The speaker of the 
day was Edward Everett. His oration was 
received with great applause. 

President Lincoln then arose to say a 
few words. He touched the hearts of his 
hearers so deeply that they sat in silence 
after he had finished. He thought that 
his speech was a failure, but afterwards 
learned what a deep impression it had 
made. 

Lincoln's address at Gettysburg is one of 
the masterpieces of the English language. 
You should learn it by heart. 

THE ADDRESS AT GETTYSBURG 

Four score and seven years ago our 
fathers brought forth on this continent, a 

125 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedi- 
cated to the proposition that all men are 
created equal. 

Now we are engaged in a great civil 
war; testing whether that nation, or any 
nation so conceived and so dedicated, can 
long endure. We are met on a great bat- 
tle-field of that war. We have come to 
dedicate a portion of that field, as a final 
resting place for those w^ho here gave their 
lives that that nation might live. It is 
altogether fitting and proper that we 
should do this. 

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedi- 
cate — we can not consecrate — we can not 
hallow — this ground. The brave men, 
living and dead, who struggled here have 
consecrated it, far above our poor power 
to add or detract. The world will little 
note, nor long remember what we say 
here, but it can never forget what they did 
here. It is for us the living, rather, to be 
dedicated here to the unfinished work 

126 



LINCOLN'S ADDRESS AT GETTYSBURG 

which they who fought here have thus far 
so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to 
be here dedicated to the great task remain- 
ing before us — that from these honored 
dead we take increased devotion to that 
cause for which they gave the last full 
measure of devotion — that we here highly 
resolve that these dead shall not have died 
in vain — that this nation, under God, 
shall have a new birth of freedom — and 
that government of the people, by the peo- 
ple, for the people, shall not perish from 
the earth. 



127 



XXI 

"THE MAN WITHOUT A COUNTRY** 

" To look up and not down, 
To look forward and not back. 
To look out and not in, and 
To lend a hand." 

Edward Everett Hale. 

HEMMED in by the narrow and 
busy streets of Boston lies the 
quiet Public Garden, the most 
beautiful spot in this old city. Here peo- 
ple pass and repass daily to and from their 
work, or come to enjoy the flowers and 
the shade of the trees. 

Just inside one of the gateways is the 
large bronze figure of a venerable man with 
flowing hair and gentle face. He carries 
his hat and walking stick. Perhaps he is 
going to his church, not far away. 

128 



"THE MAN WITHOUT A COUNTRY" 

This is the clergyman Edward Everett 
Hale. Nobody in New England was better 
known or loved than this earnest man, 
who did so much for his city and his coun- 
try. His statue was put in this public 
place to keep us in mind of his goodness. 

Now^ Edw^ard Everett Hale was no less 
patriotic than he was good and kind. Dur- 
ing the Civil War he wrote a story to 
awaken love for our native land. The 
name of the story is " The Man Without 
a Country." The story is not true, but it 
teaches us how unhappy we should be if 
we cared more for ourselves than for our 
native land. 

Some day you will enjoy reading the 
story in Doctor Hale's own words. It will 
make you more loyal to your country and 
your flag. 

The hero of the story is Philip Nolan, 
who is said to be a young officer in the 
army. 

In the year 1805 Nolan joined in a plot 
129 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

to overthrow the government of the United 
States. He was tried before a court of 
military officers, and found guilty. 

When he was asked if he had anything 
to say for himself, he cursed his country, 
and wished he might never hear her name 
again. 

Of course the gray-headed officers were 
terribly shocked, especially old Colonel 
Morgan, who conducted the trial. 

Colonel Morgan now called the officers 
into his private room. In fifteen minutes 
he returned with a face as white as a sheet. 

"Prisoner," he said in a very solemn 
voice, " hear the sentence of the court. 
The court decides that your wish is to be 
fulfilled, and that you are never to hear 
the name of the United States again." 

ISTolan laughed. But nobody else laughed. 
Old Colonel Morgan was too solemn, and 
for a minute the whole room was hushed 
dead as night. 

It was decided that Nolan should spend 
130 



" THE MAN WITHOUT A COUNTRY " 

his life at sea, on some one of the war- 
ships of the country. He was to be treated 
as an officer of his rank in the regular 
army. He was never to hear the name of 
his native land spoken. He was never to 
see or read a book or newspaper that 
printed a word of her history. He was 
never to speak or listen to a word from 
anybody who might give him a bit of news 
from home. 

If the ship on which he was sailing lay 
for months in some foreign port, he was 
almost never allowed to go on shore. He 
could read the foreign papers that came 
on board, b,ut every stray bit of new^s or 
even an advertisement that spoke of the 
United States must first be cut out. 

Every detail of his punishment was car- 
ried out with the rigid discipline of the 
navy. He was invited in turn to dine 
with the officers ; but no mess cared to have 
him often, for it prevented all talk about 
the news from home. 

131 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

The sailors called him Plain-Buttons. 
He received this name because the buttons 
on his uniform did not bear the initials 
of the United States. 

Nolan lived a very busy life. He read 
five hours every day. He was a student 
of natural history. The sailors were eager 
to bring him specimens of queer living 
things. His notebooks were filled with 
beautiful drawings of birds and animals. 

He always kept up his exercise, and was 
never known to be ill. If any other man 
was sick, he was the kindest nurse in the 
world; and he knev/ more than half the 
surgeons did. If anybody died on ship- 
board, he was always ready to read 
prayers. It is said that he read beauti- 
fully. 

At last, an old man of over eighty years, 
Philip Nolan came to his deathbed. For 
fifty-six years he had been sailing all over 
the world, and had never heard a word 
about his native land. 

132 



"THE MAK WITHOUT A COUNTRY" 

Through all these years the poor fellow 
bore his punishment without complaint. 
He became loved and respected by all. He 
was eager to befriend and teach the young 
sailors, and some of them seemed to wor- 
ship him. 

Lieutenant Danforth was with him on 
his last voyage. 

When Nolan lay dying, he thought of 
his home, and begged Danforth to tell him 
of his country. 

^' Danforth," he said, ^* I know I am 
dying. I cannot get home. Surely you 
will tell me something now? — Stop. Stop. 
Do not speak till I say what I am sure 
you know, that there is not in this ship, 
that there is not in America, a more loyal 
man than I. There cannot be a man who 
loves the old flag as I do, or prays for it 
as I do, or hopes for it as I do. But tell 
me — tell me something — tell me every- 
thing, Danforth, before I die." 

''Mr. Nolan," said Danforth, "I will 
133 



AMERICAN HISTORY FOR LITTLE FOLKS 

tell you everything yon ask about. Only, 
where shall I begin? " 

^^ God bless you," he said, pressing his 
hand. '^ Tell me their names," and he 
pointed to the stars on the flag. " The last 
I know is Ohio." Danforth told him the 
names, and drew them on his map. 

Then Nolan settled down more quietly, 
and very happily, to hear him tell in an 
hour the history of fifty years. You see 
it was Robinson CruSoe asking all the ques- 
tions of fifty-six years. 

After a while Nolan became tired, and 
wished to sleep. 

In an hour, when the doctor went in 
gently, he found that the old man had 
breathed his life away with a smile. 

In Nolan's Bible was found a slip of 
paper on which the poor fellow had written 
his last wish: 

" Bury me in the sea; it has been my 
home, and I love it. But will not some 
one set up a stone for laj memory at 

134 



"THE MAN WITHOUT A COUNTRY" 

Fort Adams or at Orleans, that my dis- 
grace may not be more than I ought to 
bear? Say on it, 



PHILIP NOLAN" 

LIEUTE2SrANT IN" THE ARMY OF THE UNITED STATES 

HE LOVED HIS COUNTRY AS NO OTHER MAN HAS LOVED 

her; BUT NO MAN DESERVED LESS AT HER HANDS/ ^' 



135 



PRONUNCIATION OF PROPER NAMES 



Abraham, a'bra-ham 
Alamo, d'ld-mo (a as in arm) 
Albany, all'ha-ny 
Alden, all'den 
Amsterdam, am'ster-dam 
Antonio, an-to'ni-o 
Asia, a'sha 
Atlantic, at-lan'tic 
Austin, os'tin 

B 

Bahamas, ha-ha' maz 
Benjamin, ben'ja-min 
Bohea, bo-he' 
Boone, boon 
Bowie, bo'e 
Brewster, broo'sier 



Cabot, kab'ut 
Carolina, kar-o-li'na 
Charleston, charlz'tun 
Christopher, kris'to-fer 
Columbia, ko-lum'hi-a 
Columbus, ko-lum'bus 
Connecticut, ko-net'i-kut 
Cornwallis, korn-walVia 
Crocket, krok'et 
Crusoe, kru'so 



Daggett, dag'et 
Daniel, dan' y el 
Deborah, deb'o-ra 

E 

Endicott, en'di-kot 
England, ing' gland 
Europe, u'rwp 
Everett, ev'er-et 



Ferdinand, fur'di-nand 
Florida, fior'i-da 
France, frans 



Gazette, ga-zeV 

Geiger, gi'ger (g as in get) 

Genoa, jen'o-a 

Gettysburg, get'is-burg (g as in 

get) 
Gofife, goff 
Greene, green 

H 

Holland, hol'and 

Houston, hu§'tun (u as in use) 



137 



PRONUNCIATION OF PROPER NAMES 



India, in'di~a 
Isabella, iz-a-heVa 
Italian, l-taVyan {% as in it) 
Italy, it'a-ly 



Joshua, josh'u-a 

K 

Kentucky, ken-tuk'y 

L 

Lafayette, lah-fa-yet' 
Lancaster, lang'kas-ter 
Lincoln, ling'kun 
Lisbon, liz'hun 

M 
Manhattan, man-hat'an 
Massachusetts, mas-a-chu' sets 
Massasoit, mas'a-soit 
Merrimac, mer'i-mak 
Mohawk, mo'hok 



Orleans, or'le-anz 



Pennsylvania, pen-sil-va'ni-a 
Philadelphia, fil-a-del'fi-a 
Plymouth, plim'uth 
Portugal, por'tu-gal (6 as in 

port) 
Priscilla, pri-sil'a (i as in it) 

R 

Rhode, rode 
Rolfe, rolf 
Rowe, ro 

s 

Salvador, sal-va-dor' (o as in 

[oort) 
Samuel, sam'u-el 
Stuyvesant, stfvesant 
Swansea, swon'se 



Tennessee, ten-e-se' 
Thermopylae, thur-mop'i-lee 



Vermont, ver-mont' 
Vineyard, vin'yard 
Virginia, ver-jin'i-a 



138 



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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




